Tag Archives: eating

{organic golden kiwi}

22 Jul

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golden kiwis are not the same as regular green kiwis you see in the stores….. i mean, of course they aren’t, right?! – they’re being featured on food & foto 😉

originating in china, golden kiwis are now mostly from new zealand, and they blow regular kiwi out of the water!  {sorry, kiwi}

their thin skin is different from the regular kiwi – smooth and hairless with little freckles throughout.  they ripen just like regular kiwi, so look for one that slightly gives to the tender touch…

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the flavour is similar, but the golden kiwi boasts a less-acidic quality and taste. they have almost a pineapple flavour… and i just LOVE THEM!!! Continue reading

{volcanic garlic – beautiful, incredible, delicious, nutritious…}

19 Jul

…shall i continue?!

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i first discovered this beautiful goodness from mudd’s harvest at the arvada farmers market

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i bought two small bulbs after spotting it and trying it… i fell in love with the colour! {and the outstanding flavour!} Continue reading

{i don’t remember exactly what i put in this vitamix smoothie…}

17 Jul

…but it was still delicious!

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and pretty! …

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it appears to be berries, spinach, dates, coconut milk, flax… i feel like i’ve made this one before?! Continue reading

{healthy snack options – quick and easy kale chips}

15 Jul

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one of my favourite snacks – grab a head of kale and break up into “chip” size pieces… then rinse, sprinkle on oil of your choice {i stick with EVOO, but coconut oil is great, too!} and then smother in nutritional yeast.  i use a bag and shake it up really well, then add more on top just before baking in the oven @ 350 degrees until crisp…

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they don’t last long… and they are great on top of salads, soups, or just as they are!

 

{personal product review : pack*it – the lunchbox cooler!}

9 Jul

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i should get paid to do reviews for companies like this – haha!  {but seriously, feel free to email me with offers! ;)}

and i honestly love this product – and i recommend it to anyone!

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especially for lunch at work, or for traveling, or for kids and family outings, or whatever… it’s so great!

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what is it?!  well i’m glad you asked 😀

it’s the portable, packable, freezable, transformable, incredible – *drum roll* Continue reading

{meatless mondays : vegfest colorado!}

8 Jul

heyyyy, hope you enjoyed the weekend and had a nice holiday!

my vacation isn’t quite over yet, but i wanted to share these fotos from vegfest this weekend…

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…it totally poured like, 4 minutes after i got there.  hence, the super curly puff-ball of a fro on top of my head.  i kinda love it, though… i miss the humidity in a way, mostly because of how well my hair behaves with it – how silly is that. 😛

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not as silly as this cool car i saw when i first walked in… Continue reading

{red, white and – blue potatoes?!}

4 Jul

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i guess they’re actually purple potatoes – but, i sort of enhanced the colour just a tad to represent july 4th a little more 😉 Continue reading

{enjoy the holiday week! – and eat some cookies!}

1 Jul

hey gang.

i’m taking vacation this week – beginning wednesday. i am beyond ready for some time off, i just really hope i can easily make it through the next two days at work…

i wanted to share this recipe from last year, it was such a hit! it’s just a basic sugar cookie with a basic frosting and some fruit.  super festive though… and yummmmmmy!  i think i’m going to take the week off from blogging, as well… i just need to disconnect and get out in nature and rest and relax… i’ll be back next week.  i hope you enjoy the holiday and these cookies!! 🙂

———

{from the archives}

this is not exactly up my typical healthy recipe alley – but if you’re going to go for it, GO FOR IT!

festive holiday sugar cookies…

i think they turned out pretty cute… oh, and delicious. Continue reading

{english peas}

26 Jun

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their season is ending soon… so grab ’em while you still can!

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i look forward to them every year!  i just love love love ’em!  and i love how they keep for a good long time in the fridge!

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i do lots of things with english peas

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i haven’t yet tried to pulverize them in a vitamix smoothie, though… but oh boy i just thought of this – i bet it would make a great spread with some garlic and hummus… mm mm, i may have to try that!

what do you like to do with your english peas?

{“fancy” french salt}

25 Jun

i love specialty foods, in case you haven’t yet discovered that about me…

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and i happen to LOVE salt – in all its varieties.

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so when a friend brought me this adorable jar of salt back from her trip to france, i was totally excited!!

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when i said to her, “ohhh i’m so excited to blog about this fancy french salt…” she was like, “wellllll – it’s just salt.  the only thing fancy about it is that i carried it all the way back home in my backpack… just for you.”

i fancy that, i say. Continue reading

{meatless mondays – farmers market pasta!}

24 Jun

oh my goodness was this a lovely meal. the whole day was lovely yesterday : there was such amazing energy in the air!  that supermoon energy was flowing all around me and through me, it was awesome!!!!  did any of you get a chance to see the super moon?  it was too cloudy here, so i will have to camp out next year 🙂  but i definitely still felt the energy this weekend!!!!

i took a little trip to a farmers market a little north of me in search of some kirby cucumbers to make pickles with.  no luck in that department, unfortunately… however i did discover some amazing things while there! and with most of the ingredients i purchased yesterday, i made this incredible pasta dish!

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farmers market pasta.

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most everything in this dish was purchased fresh from the market yesterday…

– garlic chive pasta from pappardelle’s {amazing!!  family-owned company and they have over 100 kinds of pasta!}

– organic heirloom tomatoes

– garlic scapes

– volcanic garlic {i can’t wait to blog about this!}

– fresh chives from my friend’s yard

– basil dressing, cream cheese, tomato paste, and a little parmesan {not from the market, but perfect to have in the fridge for this dish :)) Continue reading

{fair trade & organic – ice box watermelon}

19 Jun

do you know how to pick out a good watermelon?!  … one that’s guaranteed to be ripe, juicy, and flavourful?!

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well, for one thing – to guarantee the flavour and ripeness, it’s important to begin with quality.

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i always opt for organic food {especially produce} when i can… organic produce is grown with more care, handled with more care, and therefore just plain tastes better… in my humble {and generally RIGHT} opinion 🙂

this sticker tells us that not only is this watermelon organic, but it’s fair trade. which {happily} means the farmers that grew this watermelon are paid a FAIR WAGE for their product and services.  this is extremely important to me also because i’m a collective thinker – i am grateful for that farmer who took time to grow this beautiful fruit for me to enjoy.  and i want him/her to get paid what they are worth for doing that service. fair trade kind of cuts out the middle man, if you will.  you can read more about fair trade products here. Continue reading

{hooray for cherry season!}

18 Jun

nom nom, don’t you just love cherries?!

they are so fabulous for so many reasons!! …

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good for your heart… {among other things like gout and blood clots}

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loaded with antioxidants… Continue reading

{meatless mondays : quinoa pasta w/ sauteed ramps, simmered pear tomatoes, & fresh english peas}

17 Jun

that’s a mouthful, and a really long title for a blog…but that is essentially what is in this dish, and to leave out any part just seamed wrong.  those are all amazing and wonderful things and when you put them all together you get this incredible dish :

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super healthy, keeps well in the fridge, easy to make, delicious… cute. 🙂

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i mean, seriously though – it’s cute… sure – it’s pasta, but it’s cute. 😛

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i’ve mentioned this pasta before – i love it for a bunch of reasons, including the fact that it is non-gmo, organic, and gluten-free. Continue reading

{“sui generis” in produce : the cherimoya}

12 Jun

in case you’re wondering : sui generis 

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have you ever seen or even better, eaten one of these beauties?!  this is the lovely cherimoya {pronounced “cher-uh-moi-uh”}…

i love how she is shaped like a heart… and yes, i totally think this particular fruit is a “she” – i don’t always feel that way, but i did about the cherimoya… what a unique and interesting and wonderful treat this was!  and she was definitely a lady!

when one first brings a cherimoya home, it’s a totally different colour than in this foto… that is to say, if it hasn’t ripened yet.  this particular fruit in the above foto is fully ripe.  typically when you buy them from the store, they are more on the green side… it takes 2 or 3 days to have it ripen up at home… it almost becomes like an avocado when ready to eat.

beauty comes in all colours, shapes, and sizes…

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they aren’t exactly cheap, weighing in at easily $5-$6 for one fruit… but my goodness, is it worth it! Continue reading

{just some pics from june}

11 Jun

the temps were absolutely perfect last week – 70-80 degrees during the day and cool nights that require only a light sweater, but flip flops are comfortable.  the smell of the grill lingers in the air, the frangrance from the various blooms waft from every angle, the sun is warm, the air is warm, the days are long… and that means i take lots of little walks.

here’s a few shake-it app inspired fotos i snapped last week while wandering around my ‘hood…

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devouring the best pastrami sammy EVER – from masterpiece delicatessen in the highlands… my new favourite spot!!

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my neighbourhood kind of reminds me of new york…

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enjoying my first latte in about a year… {half caff, only – definitely iced!} Continue reading

{pretty purple artichokes}

6 Jun

why are artichokes so amazing?!?!?!?!!!!!!

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and beautiful?!?!?!?!!!!!!

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i bought a handful of these little purple ones the other day… Continue reading

{meatless mondays – pretty rainbow chard}

3 Jun

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prior to sauteing up a healthy batch of beautiful rainbow chard {i make mine with a little EVOO and diced shallots},  i like to sit back and admire the colours and patterns this wonderful vegetable creates…

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puts a whole new meaning to “eat the rainbow” eh?!

😉 Continue reading

{balsamic bellavitano cheese}

30 May

sooooo – my stats have suddenly started dropping lately.  i don’t really want to focus on it too much, but i find it odd that out of nowhere, i’m getting less and less “likes” when for a good while there i was getting more and more and people were finding and following my blog… i just find it odd… any insight you all may have is appreciated.

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meanwhile, i’m going to keep writing amazing blogs.  i love doing it for me, but i also do this as i hope to inspire others to try new foods and recipes and to create their own!    food is fun.

this blog is about another specialty cheese that i discovered at whole foods market a couple weeks ago called balsamic bellavitano.  it is one of the most delicious cheeses i’ve ever had – and i’ve tried a lot of cheeses!  this is a reserve cheese with a little nuttiness and hints of fruit in the flavour.  i love how they wrap it in special paper…

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… just makes it so fun to open up 🙂 Continue reading

{ways artichokes are like humans}

14 May

it’s artichoke season!!!

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and thank goodness for that!!!!  i wrote a blog or two about them last spring… i just love these beautiful babies. although they do take an awful lot of work to prepare for such a little amount of actual flesh… it’s SO worth it – the scrumptiousness waiting inside doesn’t quite compare to any other…

it got me thinking about how artichokes are kind of like us, like humans…

i know you may be chuckling thinking how the heck can i be like a green pokey vegetable?!  well… the way i see it –

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an artichoke looks like a flower.

just like us 🙂 Continue reading