CHiCKPeaS ...

I am a huge fan of chickpeas.  They are very healthy ... and yummy to eat.  Chickpeas are the main ingredient in a lot of greek foods, like hummus.  I enjoy baking them in the oven and snacking on them (or frying them in the pan with a little oil and a lot of seasoning), putting them on top of salads or incorporating them into other dishes.  When I got to San Antonio, it was one of the first things I bought at the grocery store.  I am one of those people that insist on buying my beans dried and boiling them myself - then I know what's been added to it - but you can always purchase canned ones, just remember to rinse them before you use them.

This particular day I was really wanting to do something interesting with them - especially since my mother had told me the only way she had really tried them was in hummus or occasionally on a salad and she wasn't really thrilled with them.  I decided to add them to sauteed bell peppers and onions and then incorporate some DreamFields pasta into the mix.

I am not a big fan of a lot of pastas and rice because of the way that they make me feel after I am done eating them.  And I have noticed that since I became a vegetarian, those products (as well as bread and other high carbohydrate foods) make me feel even worse than I did before.  I believe in eating things in moderation and have shopped around for lower carb brands of certain products.  (The tip I have learned:  ONLY make the amount that you are going to use for the meal you are making.  That way you don't go back and get seconds and feel ... well ... blah after eating too much of it.)  DreamFields is a product that I have found that I really do enjoy.  It has good flavor and has only 5 grams of digestible carbs per serving, so it doesn't raise my blood sugar levels and makes me feel full longer.  Check it out.  (Dreamfieldsfoods.com)

I cut the bell peppers and onions into thin slices and then sauteed them in a pan that was sprayed with some olive oil cooking spray.  After a few minutes, I added 2 teaspoons of butter to the pan ... to give it that butter taste I so enjoy my sauteed onions to have.  (I don't use a lot of butter or oil in my cooking.)  I then added 1/2 cup of chickpeas to the pan (ones that I had boiled earlier in the day).  After about five minutes, I added a chili & lime spice blend, granulated garlic and fresh cracked black pepper - stirred it a few more times and then removed it from the heat.  I then took 2 servings of the pasta (I was making this for both my mother and myself) and mixed it into the pan with the vegetable/chickpea mixture.  After adding just a little bit of sea salt, it was ready to serve. 

This dish ended up being enough for both of us to have some for dinner and the rest for lunch the next day.  And I have made my mother a fan of chickpeas.

aPPLeS aND oNioNS

I love to mix things together that you don't usually think to mix together ... and a lot of the things I create are purely based on what I'm craving at the time.  I take a look at what it is that I'm wanting ... then look through the refrigerator, the pantry, the bowls of fruits and veggies on the counter and think of what it is that I want to create next.

This began as a faded thought ... I love the smell of onions and garlic being sauteed together ... one of my most favorite kitchen smells actually.  But hmm ... what else can be added to onions in that pan to give me a great flavor?  And then it hit me ... apples.  Now, the dish was originally intended to be something that would accompany some sliced potatoes that I enjoy making, but when I opened the pantry and pulled out my potatoes, I realized that the two I had left - the two I had counted on - were very sad and pathetic and in much need of a burial.  All the same, the dish turned out wonderfully.

I cut the onion in half, then thinly sliced the halves.  I then cut the apple in half, removed the core and cut its two halves into thin slices as well.  Very simple.  I then placed my pan over medium heat and added 2 teaspoons olive oil and 2 teaspoons butter.  I placed the onions and cooked them for about 3 minutes before adding the apple slices to the pan, cooked until they were tender and added a little salt and a lot of pepper.  They were delicious. 

i DiD iT!!

It is 6pm and I'm doing it.  I'm actually - right at this very moment - sitting in a chair at the Greyhound Bus Station in downtown Houston, bags packed, ticket in hand, heading to San Antonio.  I have only mentioned this to one person outside of my family.  I'm nervous ... and maybe a little scared.  So far so good, though.  This is a whole new experience for me, but people have been very nice and I'm actually pretty excited.  Who knows what's going to happen there?  Things happen for a reason and I believe that coincidences are just things God has done, but decided not to take credit for.


I am on the bus - on my way!! - and I was lucky enough to get a window seat.  I have met a nice older lady who is sitting next to me and a guy who just got out of jail after 8 years, though you wouldn't think so if he didn't tell you.  (I also met a lady who is a preacher that travels back and forth on the bus all the time.)  I believe that everyone who touches your life does so for a reason and that your life will never be the same because of them.  She and I have had a very interesting conversation about food (she wants to cut meat out of her life so it's funny that she chose to sit next to me) and, with him, we've had an interesting conversation about God and religion.  She is a teacher of religion, he is not sure if he wants to find God because so many people used it in jail.  I don't believe in some of the things she had to say (i.e. that people who are gay won't go to heaven without asking for God's permission), but a very nice lady none-the-less.  Just another 20 more minutes and I'll be at my destination.  The excitement is there - and so is the fear, but I'm not going to let that fear stop me.  I'm also not going to allow any negativity - or worry of negativity - allow me not to be open to the good things that can happen here.


It is 4am and my mom is asleep.  We were up till around 3am laughing and talking.  It feels good here.  I don't know where I'm going to go from here ... or what I'm going to do while I'm here ... but I'm going to enjoy this time.  I ... feel very relaxed here.  It's beautiful ... and peaceful. 

oVeRCoMiNG FeaR ...

What you need to know about the past is that no matter what has happened, it has all worked together to bring you to this very moment.  And this moment you can choose to make everything new.  Right now. -Author unknown

Where I am has come to an end.  My future is before me - and I'm excited to see where this new road takes me.  I'm scared, sad about the relationships that have ended, nervous - but happy about the opportunities that have opened up to me.  I believe that things happen for a reason and that there's no such thing as coincidence.  I am getting my life back - no more putting my all into helping everyone else.  It is now time for me.  *fingers crossed*

Today I accomplished a goal that I have been putting off for some time now.  I did a simple yoga routine and a 30 minute stretch session.  I have to say - for the first time in a very long time, I feel relaxed and less tense.  My body feels good.  My mind is still crazy.  As things change and I move on, that will all change for the better.

I'm looking forward to being able to cook again - cook for people that will actually eat what I make.  I have this idea in my head of a dish with potatoes, onions and green apples.  Hmmm ...

HoNey BeeS, PoTaTo CHiP CooKieS WiTH CHoCoLaTe CHiPS aND a ReaLLy GReaT WoMaN

Honey bees ...
I am a vegetarian.  I often think of myself as a vegetarian with vegan tendencies.  Vegans don't eat anything that is an animal biproduct (i.e. meats, eggs, dairy of any kind).  They also don't use animal biproducts in other aspects of their lives (i.e. furs, leather).  I am very big on saving the planet and of not harming animals (or people) in any way.  I, however, do not have a problem with drinking milk, eating cheese or eating eggs - just don't eat actual flesh.  I often do research on being a vegetarian because I'm always concerned that I'm not eating healthy enough - getting enough protein or other nutrients, for example.  During this research, I found a VERY interesting article about honey bees. 

I had never even thought about honey being something that I should or should not eat.  I'm not really a honey fan - I don't drink it in my tea or use it much in my cooking - but I do make my own honey mustard and have heard a lot of people say that they use it in place of sugar in some of their cooking.  Us eating honey, though, is not only harmful to the bees themselves, but also to our food supply.  Very interesting article - check it out.

The biggest thing that I learned from it - something I REALLY didn't know is:  "After a bee swallows floral nectar, it is partially digested in its primary stomach where the bee adds its own digestive secretion.  It is then regurgitated.  This bee vomit is called honey and is considered to be food by the people who take it from their hives."  Um...yeah...

http://planetgreen.discovery.com/food-health/reason-vegans-honey.html

Potato chip cookies with chocolate chips ...

Today was a fun baking day for me.  See, I have been talking about these cookies for months - and everyone I have said it to has given me the WEIRDEST look.  My mother made them when I was younger and today, when my roommate told me she was heading to the grocery store, I asked her to grab me a few extra things that I needed to make them.  Potato chip cookies with chocolate chips.  Yum!!  Very country - and very delicious.  My roommate went back for a couple more and her two daughters each ate two in one sitting.  Not only do I have yet another "out there" cookie to sell to my customers, but I also came up with a new idea for sugar cookies.

See, I hate sugar cookies.  HATE them!!  I like to make them - roll them out, use the cookie cutters, bake 'em and decorate 'em - but I have yet to find a plain sugar cookie that I just love the flavor of.  To me they taste well just ... flat!!  But after today - hmmm ... - instead of just white sugar ... what happens if I add in other sugars too??  I sound rather cryptic, I know, but that's because I'm afraid to share my ideas on here considering that I own a sweets business.  If I give away my secret recipes, why do they need me?  Let me see what happens with my idea and I'll get back to you.

A really great woman...

The absolutely beautiful woman in the picture is my Grandma Margie.  A great woman ... with a wonderful heart.  Mother to seven ... grandmother to many.  She died way too young, I feel, and I miss her a lot.  She ... she always made me feel loved, special and wanted ... even when I didn't feel like I deserved to be loved by anyone.  She was always proud of me ... always glad to hear my voice on the phone.  I've been thinking about her a lot lately - as I'm working hard to make my life better and to reach all those goals that she always told me I could do.  I wish she was here now to see.  I wish I could hear her tell me one last time how much she loves me, how proud she is of me.  Sometimes I feel like she's standing there watching me, when I'm doing what I love doing.  Sometimes I see her smiling.  I love you Grandma - and I miss you so much.

I've been writing a letter to my Grandfather - the handsome gentleman standing next to her in this picture.  He is such a great guy - and the last of my grandparents alive.  Honestly, I am a little afraid of him and always was.  He was never mean to me - sometimes very honest when I really needed someone to be that, but never mean.  I still see him as I did as a child - very much taller than me.  He was also quiet.  I will always remember when I'd call the house to talk to them - most often it was him that would answer, but he always called my Grandma so she could get on the phone too.  Her and I would talk ... and he would listen ... every once in a while adding his two cents ... but he ALWAYS told me that he loved me before we got off the phone.  I remember him always being so serious growing up ... but I also remember his laugh (just thinking about it now makes me smile).  Can you tell I miss him?  But this letter is so hard for me to write.  All I want to say is that I love him and I miss him lots - but those few simple words seem so scary to write down on a piece of paper and actually send to him.  Maybe I should stop trying to make it so "perfect" and just write those few words.  They might be simple - but they do say a lot.

a SaD Day FoR THe LoVeRS oF oLD MoVieS

Today is a sad day for those of us who love old black n white movies.  Today, at the ate of 79, one of the best has died.  RIP Elizabeth Taylor. 

You will always be one of my favorites.  From the first time that I saw you in Cleopatra, I have had this LOVE of old movies, wanting to see every one that I can find.  The Taming of the Shrew...The Comedians...Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.  Old Hollywood.  Watching you on those movies - made me want to feel glamorous, made me want to wear dresses and heels, made me want to be beautiful.  You were absolutely amazing.  Heaven has become a little bit brighter today because you are there to share your beauty and talent with those that are there. 

THe BeGiNNiNG ...

I had it all planned out how I was going to begin this blog ... it all written out, it all decided ... because for some reason I felt that it had to be perfect from the very beginning or no one would read it, no one would be interested, no one would come back for more.  Now that I'm sitting down at the computer, all of that is out the window.

This ... is a work in progress.  As is my business.  As am I.  I will work out the little kinks as I go, but I will enjoy every step of making this what I want it to be, what I envision it.  And you ... you will have the opportunity to witness the blog grow, the business grow ... and me grow.

Today is a new day ... It is the beginning.  I am home from my mini vacation with a new frame of mind, a new way of thinking.  I have now officially launched my blog that I've been talking about for around a year now.  And I have gotten over my fear of advertising my business to people other than my friends and friends-of-friends.

http://houston.craigslist.org/biz/2278719499.html

Welcome!!