I Like it Spicy Part 2

Wow, what a champ! Two blog posts in this week and at least one more coming up tomorrow. My hats off to you ladies who post daily-- I could never manage to squeeze it all in! And speaking of squeezing, I have a lot to pack into this post, so let's get to it!


You may recall from my previous post, my love for all things spicy, and my affinity for gingerbread. I've melded the two nicely together in this delightful dandy of a breakfast bowl:

Cottage cheese, copious amounts of cinnamon, slightly more judicious amounts of ginger, cloves and nutmeg (to taste), cereal trio,the requisite Fiber One and the mightiest of maple peanut butters, all drizzled with molasses.

Puts me in the holiday mood just thinking about it :)

I've also been in particularly cheery mood since receiving my goodie box loaded with fun things to try. My latest experiment involved the salt-free Chili Lime Seasoning blend by Mrs. Dash.
I love all the spices used in this blend including chili peppers, cumin and cayenne, plus the sour lime. But I also really liked the fact that this didn't contain any added salt. D likes to pour half a slat shaker on his food at meals--more out of habit than anything I think--so it's always nice to know I'm not contributing to any premature hypertension :) I have been obsessed with salmon lately, and this seemed like the perfect thing to pep it up. easiest thing ever (seen here with Tina's roasted broccoli and rosemary acorn squash). I just squirted a little lime juice on my salmon fillets, then sprinkled on the seasoning blend before popping them in the oven. They came out perfectly spicy and delicious, and I don't even think Dustin swiped the salt to douse his plate. But he probably just did it when I wasn't looking ;)

And now for the freaky part! I know you all missed this last week when I flaked out ( or maybe not), so I tried to come up with a real doozy for this installment. Guess what this is?


No, not worms, slugs or seaweed...
Pickled cactus! Awesome! Way back in the summer, I joked about munching on some pokey plants, and I finally found some that are safe to eat!

Well, these prickly pickles may not taste like worms, but they kind of felt that way all sliding around in my mouth.

Suggestion: do not eat these plain. Instead, dice them into a quesadilla or mix them up with some bbq sauce and cooked ground beef on top of a taco salad. That way they add a nice smokey and subtly spicy taste without the disgusting sluggy side effects.

Well, I have to peace out because Dustin's entire family is coming over for dinner tonight to celebrate our Christmas with them (they're headed to NYC *jealous*) and I am in charge of whipping up our holiday meal.

At my parents' house, we always have steak and lobster (neither or which I really care for) on Christmas Eve and then turkey on Christmas day. I actually got into a huge argument with my mom over whether or not we had ever had anything besides turkey on Christmas (for the record, we HAVE, Mom!). I've got some yummy things on the menu for tomorrow, but tell me--what do you usually eat for your Christmas dinner?

P.S. You all were so sweet to compliment my gingerbread cookies in the last post--makes me smile! xoxo