kale chips

I have been wanting to make kale chips.  I saw them at the grocery store and they were quite expensive! So I decided to make them at home.  I adapted the recipe from many different sites and blogs.

kale chips:
1 bunch organic kale (washed and dried very well)
1T olive oil
salt
any other spices for flavor (chili pepper, cayenne, lemon, vinegar, garlic powder...)

Organic Kale

 Tear kale into pieces and try to avoid the tough stalk.  Drizzle kale with olive oil and spices

bake kale at 35- for 12-15 min (until crunchy)

take out and enjoy!

I think Asher would have liked it if he tried it but he won't touch anything green these days

After eating most of it I added to rest to my chili in place of tortilla chips and it was sooooo yummy!!

I'm telling you these are super good.  I don't know how well they save since I ate all of them.  They literally dissolve in your mouth (they would be great for toddlers!).  And are a great alternative snack if you are trying to eat healthy.  Did you know that kale is said to be one of the healthiest food in the world?!?  As I was looking for recipes and reading about kale chips I noticed that many people grind these up and add them to pop corn.  I am going to have to try that next.  I really hope you try these and tell me what you think. Oh and make sure you really dry the kale in the beginning.  Mine was a little wet still and those pieces came out a little chewy.
PS.  sorry my pics are weird I was playing with my phone camera and didn't think I would be posting them :)

3 blogs

You know I have 3 blogs?  I keep forgetting I have a blog and then start a new one!  WEll I just remembered this blog and will update it tonight (maybe, if I have time or remember lol!).  Can you say...."MOMMY BRAIN!?!?!"

asher's airplane party

OK it has taken me forever to do this because I have been so busy playing with my baby everyday!  Here are some pictures from Asher's airplane themed birthday party.  I got a lot of ideas from this website.  We had so much fun planning the party!  Jason even helped make the runway on the cake look real.

broiled tofu

Since I am vegetarian I am always looking for new tofu recipes.  I honestly don't like tofu that much unless it taste nothing like tofu.  But it is super cheap and a great way to get protein.  We like to have tofu in stir fry but a lot of the time it is still too soft and mushy for my liking.  I decided to try broiled tofu because it is quick and looks a little more dried out than other tofu recipes (which I like). 

First thing you want to do is dry out the tofu as much as you can. I put the tofu on a plate and stacked books in a casserole dish on top and left it like this for a few hours.  In a hurry I have skipped this step and the tofu still came out good just make sure and squeeze some moisture out before you move to the next step.

After that you will want to marinade the tofu in any sauce you like.  I usually marinate my tofu in soy sauce with a little bit of olive oil or Trader Joe's Soyaki sauce.  You can leave it like this for an hour or even overnight.

Then place the cut up tofu on a baking sheet and place in the oven under broil.  Broil about 10 minutes then flip each piece over and broil for another 10 minutes.

When it is done enjoy the tofu hot over rice or in stir fry or cool for sandwiches and salads.  Soo yummy!



asher turns 1 year old

My baby turned one year old on Friday, March 4th.  I am not going to say anything about it because I don't want to get emotional.  I have had enough of that already.  So I will just post pictures of how we spent his special day!

Started the day by making healthy muffins for Asher's snack

Then we went to the beach where we hung out with Grandma and Grandpa

He got totally wiped out by a wave and didn't even care

Daddy got off work early and met us at the beach

We spent the afternoon at the Dr's for his 1 year checkup

And he got shots :(

We met grandma and Auntie Kelsey for dinner at Sammy's Pizza

I brought a muffin with cream cheese frosting and he hated it!

Soooo we got ice cream

And he only liked the chocolate syrup

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY I LOVE YOU!!

vegan pot pie

I am always asked for my pot pie recipe so I decided to post it.  I was going to take nice detailed pictures but I forgot.  So halfway though I got a couple pictures but they aren't the best and I didn't even get a picture of the final product.  One day I will.  The pot pie was super yummy though.  It fed 5 people and we had a little leftover. 

 2 9in pastry shells (soo easy to make!  You can use real butter, marg. or sometimes to be healthy I use an olive oil crust recipe)
1/2 c flour
1/2 c nutritional yeast
1/2 c olive oil
2 1/2c veg broth
2 small potatoes cooked
1 1/2 or 2 c cooked veggies of your choice (I used frozen organic peas, corn, carrots and green beans)
1 can beans of your choice ( I like to use white beans or kidney beans)
1 garlic clove chopped
1/2t pepper
salt

-Roll out 1 of the 2 pastry shells and place into a 2L casserole dish and cook at 400 for 5-10min
-in large sauce pan combine yeast and flour and stir until toasted
-slowly add oil and stir with whisk
-whisk in stock, garlic, salt, pepper and cooked veggies and beans
-simmer 5-10 min
-pour into pie dish
-top with pastry
-cut slices into pastry
-bake at 400 for 20 min

This is a staple at our house.  It is soo yummy and stays well for leftovers for a couple days.  You can use any veggies or even add meat if you are not vegetarian.  You can use no pastry shell and top the filling with mashed potatoes for shepherd's pie.



filling for pie



rolling out the pastry

pastry

Wanted you to see the dish I use.  A 9 inch pie pan is just a little too small.  This is much deeper.

Right before it goes in the oven.  You can have a lot of fun with the pie if you are entertaining.  You can make it pretty and add designs before sticking it in the oven.  Not me!  I was in a hurry :)

nikon d5000

Jason got a new camera.  I say "Jason got a new camera" not "we got a new camera" because he informed me that it is HIS!  He's so funny sometimes.  It's a Nikon d5000 (whatever that means).  I am fine with it being his because I know NOTHING about cameras.  I feel lost just looking at it.  It will be nice to finally have some good pictures of Asher and of life.  I am hoping to catch those precious moments since it takes pictures so fast!  Here are some pictures Jason took yesterday.  Next step- figure out how to edit.