Eeeeeewwwww!

Just in time for Freaky Food Friday! A batch of disgu--eeewww--sting concoctions from yours truly. Well, not that I actually think they're that gross--but I think my husband would beg to differ! :)

But, as we food bloggers know, the food that looks the strangest can often times taste the best--and be good for you too! Number One:

The Smeeeeewwwwthie!

Spinach, blueberries, stevia, cocoa powder, cinnamon and a few chunks of banana. Looks disgusting, tastes delicious! The chocolate flavor was pretty faint, but just added a nice hint of flavor while masking the gritty taste of the spinach. I love getting 2 full servings of veggies before lunch time!

Second: Neeeeewwwwdles!

Not that I have anything AT ALL against normal noodles, but finding a worthy pasta swap is kind of a fun little experimentation for me. I tired kelp noodles not too long ago, and couldn't resist these yam noodles when I spotted them in our Asian grocery.

These shiritaki noodles are almost identical to the famous Tofu Shiritaki, minus the tofu. I used to love the Tofu Shiritaki, but obviously the soy factor is a problem for me, so I was super excited to see the soy-free original version.

These noodles so require a bit of extra attention. After rinsing and draining extremely well ( warning! DO NOT smell them right as you open the bag--bad news bears fer real), I steamed them in the microwave for about 3-4 minutes and patted them dry with a clean dishtowel. I think cooking them for a little bit removes any of the briny taste and leaves them actually smelling like yams (instead of sewage).

Served with homemade turkey meatballs and spicy marinara. Yum Yum. :)

I did like these better than the kelp noodles. The shiritaki are much more like regular pasta, albeit finer and a little more chewy. But I do think they provide a great lighter base for more sturdy meal components such as protein, sauce, veggies and cheese.

There are basically no nutrition facts for these noodles--There are 2.5 servings per package, but each serving clocks 0 calories, fat, protein--nothing! While I am sure there is a minimal amount of calories and nutrients, the only ingredients are purified water, yam flour and hydrated lime. Now that's kind of freaky!

I know I have been kind of a bad blogger lately, and I really do miss everyone! My sister just announced a wedding date--in 8 weeks--so we are scrambling around trying to get that business under control. Plus work is very energy-consuming at the moment. Yeesh.

But also to be totally honest, sometimes I really enjoy not focusing so much on food in the day to day affairs. When I was locked into my ED, food was all I thought about, and now it's kind of refreshing to remove that fixation from some of my activities. Not that I am going anywhere though! This blog has served as an invaluable tool for me throughout the worst of my disorder and my continuing recovery. I know you all understand :)

Have a glorious weekend. And tell me--what freaky food do you love that looks disgusting, but tastes amazing? Love you lots! xoxo

Best Freaky Friday ever!

Well hey there, hi there, ho there bloggie friends! Gosh, how I have missed you guys! It's 2:00 and I am finally sitting down for probably the first time today. I just thought to myself, Hey! What's that thing I do when I have spare time? Oh yeah! BLOG!! Which explains my lack of decent posting lately--no free time, lots of life getting in the way, but NO apologies :) After all, what's life without a little excitement, huh?

But what better day of the week to come back than Friday, and especially when we can finally make it a FREAKY FOOD Friday! My long lost buddy Janetha B. and I met up for a little blab n gab over lunch yesterday.

So fun! And guess what? She brought me the most amazing thing from her trip to Jamaica!

Betcha never saw this before! What could be more fun (and more freaky) than banana ketchup? Two of my loves united!!

The minute I saw this, I knew EXACTLY how I wanted to try it out. I thought it would be the perfect accompaniment to some baked yams--how delish. (The yams are paler than sweet potatoes, so it doesn't feel quite right to call them cheetas--perhaps leopards instead??)

Wow! This banana ketchup thing really needs to catch on in the U.S.! The ketchup was sweet, sticky and thick with a strong banana flavor and a bit of tang. I swear, with a little dip of this amazing condiment, my yam tasted just like a caramelly banana chip. Very tropical. I almost felt like I was in Jamaica for a sec...and then I remembered it was 30 degrees out side.

Just for fun, I'll show you guys what else I had with my phenomenal potato "chips"

Broiled broccoli, baby steak and massive amounts of caramelized onions--to go with my caramel banana chips, obviously :)

I will be catching up this weekend for sure, and I'm excited to see what everyone's been up to!

I'm off to some family adventures myself. The parentals are in SLC for sissy's birthday this weekend, so I'm sure there will be lots of yummy food, plus some more of this fantastic cake :)

Since I haven't heard from you guys in a long time, tell me: What's the freakiest food you've ever tried from an exotic locale? Maybe a trip to Mexico or Europe--or maybe just a trip to your grandma's house for dinner--do tell! Miss you and love you! xoxo

Barley Bowls

Hey kids! Thanks for welcoming me back on my last post. It's always nice to feel at least a little missed while I'm away :) As I mentioned, things have been pretty much a whirlwind since I've been back, and sometimes a crazy schedule necessitates a bit of laziness--or shall we say "efficiency" in the cooking department.

Between church, laundry and paying attention to my poor neglected husband, I only had a few hours last Sunday to catch up with everything and prepare for the week. I did some prep work for our dinner on Monday and wound up with a TON of leftovers.

I have been dying to try the recipe for Creamy Barley featured in last month's Real Simple, but I knew I wouldn't have time Monday night to put it all together. Not to mention, we didn't have the instant barley called for, so I decided to cook up our regular pearled barley (thank you food storage) in advance and modify the recipe on Monday. The recipe calls for two cups of instant barely, so I used 1 1/2 c. regular. Holy moly barely explosion!! I always forget that Real Simple like to make their servings Real Large (which is fine by me!), so even though I used a sufficient amount of the grain in my version, we still had SO much left.

For my Creamy Barley, I sauteed some onions in a large saucepan until golden, then added 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms and one package of thawed and drained frozen spinach. As the mixture cooked, I stirred in 1 c. cooked barley and a 14 oz can diced Italian style tomatoes (with about 1/4 of the liquid removed). Then, to make it creamy and extra delish, I added two laughing cow wedges and a healthy sprinkle of Parmesan cheese with extra feta for garnish.

For added protein and a European flair, I also "fried" an egg to top off my masterpiece. Yep, another whole egg as part of the Fatty February challenge!

Really, the yolk does add an excellent element of flavor and texture, and was the perfect compliment to this meal. Yum yum. This made 3 servings. My sis and D both liked it too, although Sarah opted out of the egg on hers. She doesn't know what she's missing ;)

And additionally, since I am now overrun with barley, I decided to do some of my standard experimentation and incorporate it into my breakfasts. While not exactly a Freaky Food, it definitely turns the tables on breakfast norms for me!

Above is a delightful mix of Greek yogurt, Crofter's Asian Superfruit spread, berries, Naturally More peanut butter and 1/2 c. barley, plus cinnamon, of course!

Round two was equally scrumptious and included 1 chopped pear steamed with cinnamon, yog, sugar free maple syrup, almond butter and barley. So good and both barley breakfast bowls held me over for hours. Excellent, as I expect nothing less from my first meal of the day :)

Luckily for me, I still have a few more serving of this great grain in my fridge to eat up throughout the next few days. It's kept remarkably well and has been very versatile. According to a little online investigating, barley also contains loads of amino acids and can help fight high cholesterol and regulate blood sugar. So I'd highly encourage all of you to be a little daring in the grains department and give it a try. What's your favorite grain? Any interesting ways to eat it?

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend full of lots of good things, including healthy fats, good grains and lots of R&R--I know I'm opting for all of the above! xoxo

Finally (Freaky) Friday!

Whoo hoo! It's finally Friday! And, better yet, it finally Freaky Food Friday! I haven't done one these for quite a while, so I think it's long over due for some weird and wonderful bites, don't you agree?

I have been saving these for quite some time--you know it's freaky food when Dustin practically gags at the sight. But that's also how you know it's delicious :)

I love brussels sprouts, and I love pickles, so it's only natural that I would want to try this fantastically freaky combination.

You know what else I love? GARLIC. So I had to get them for sure when I saw these little lovelies bobbing around in the jar!

I halfway expected these to be lightly soggy and mushy, but they were actually quite fresh and even crisp! They had the perfect gently sweet dill infusion with a light tang from the brine. So good! I haven't really thought of any way to use them in a main dish, but they do make the perfect accompaniment to any snack plate or sammie!

Speaking of freaky foods, don't forget to check out Kendal's super sweet guest post last Friday. She's had some awesome food adventures that are totally worth checking out.

Also, do doo da doo (trumpet)! I am headed to Arizona next week for work, which is not so exciting BUT I will have the chance to go to Trader Joe's to stock up on some awesome eats!! Yay! I am so excited! On my list to get already: pita puffs, chocolate chips and salsa!

Tell me what else I should keep an eye out for while I'm there! I would LOVE to hear your favorite TJ's stuff--I know you all will have the perfect recommendations! Don't worry, I'm leaving plenty of room in my suitcase!

Have a wonderful weekend, and Happy Valentine's Day!! xoxo

The Weird. The Unusual. The Unknown.

Howdy y'all! As I mentioned, I am up in the wild, wild west this weekend to get some birthday love and spoiling from my mama and daddy. While I'm gone, I've asked the lovely Kendal from Eating Abroad to guest for me by taking over this week's Freaky Food Friday. She's got a great blog that I very highly recommend you check out pronto. Read on, and I promise you won't be disappointed! This is a great post, filled with wonderful pictures--Thanks so much Kendal!
See you soon for a recap! xoxo, E

In the last 6 years, I have been blessed enough to travel to Italy, Thailand, Cambodia, Tanzania, Egypt, Luxembourg, Tunisia, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and England. I have lived in Kenya, the USA, and Germany. In each of these places, I've seen some pretty weird things, especially when it comes to food.

Weird food makes traveling what it is- a chance to experience another culture.

What would we be without our food culture?

Would we still have a day to sit down with family and talk about our blessings if there was no Thanksgiving?

What would birthdays be without the cake and ice cream or summers without a barbecue?

What's Belgium without the waffle? What's a waffle without Belgium?

People form an identity based on the food they eat.

Vegetarian. Vegan. Pescatarian. Lacto-ovo-vegetarian. The list goes on.

To understand a culture, you've got to understand their food.

Some of my best traveling experiences around the world took place around tables of food and drinks with new friends. I've eaten traditional home-cooked meals and food cooked over a fire in the middle of a dusty street. Food helps make the experience.

Although food makes traveling much more fun, there are a few freaky foods I'm still unwilling to try- even in the name of cultural understanding.

This is my second year living in Germany as a traveling teacher. When asked to write about freaky food, plenty came to mind.

Luckily, I can avoid many freaky German foods by hiding behind the vegetarian identity. Such as...

Blutwurst (translation: blood sausage. Yes, it is really sausage made of blood.)

Presskopf (English speakers call it head cheese, but it's actually bits of gross meat chunks held together by a gelatin.)

Not wanting to think about this stuff or it's origins... let's move on.

It's freaky. It's German. It's Vegetarian. It's Knödel!

This freaky food consists of Stove Top Stuffing like bread bits tightly packed into a little pouch.

Notice the dimples in the plastic for the water to get through?

To cook: soak in water. Boil. Drain. Remove from plastic. Sauce. Eat.

What sort of sauce? You may ask. Most Germans would suggest using some sort of beef sauce, but I use mushrooms.

Lots and lots of delicious cooked mushrooms!

We are all familiar with German sauerkraut. Another strange variation on this traditional food is rotkohl.

Cooked red cabbage.

My favorite variety is rotkohl with apples!

Dinner

Germans are known for their seriousness and bad sense of humor. I disagree. Someone who created a phallic shaped food item and named it Super Dickmann's must have a sense of humor.

The box reads: Super Dickmann's- Super Big with Crisp Chocolate- Plump and Chocolaty

Now for the Super Dickmann's Photo Shoot

The Super Dickmann's are filled with marshmallow fluff atop a wafer.

The weird. The unusual. The unknown.

That's what traveling and eating are all about.

You never know what you might find as your teeth tear through a new food.

It might just become your new favorite!

Freaky Fake Noodles and Pretty Pink Everything Else

Hi there everyone! Well, when I mentioned I would probably be blogging less frequently, I certainly didn't expect a whole week to go by before I posted anything! Speaking of my last post, thanks so much for all your incredible sweet comments on my wedding and your anniversary wishes! You guys are so nice! Anyhowzzles, there has definitely been a lot going on in the food world and other wise, so lets hop to it shall we?

First up, let me show you a little of the things that have been keeping me occupied...
one the food front, we have experienced the passing of a few greats recently including my beloved PB2 (unpictured), crunchy Sunbutter and super chunky peanut butter.
You can see I don't typically leave enough remnants for OIAJ so that was no consolation, but to be fair I'm not that disappointed. I tired them once, and found it a little too messy and not nearly enough nut butter to go around (as evidenced by my thorough cleaning job above).

We also had our very first meatless Monday, which sadly, went undocumented, but was delicious. I know it would be a lot more appealing with pictures, but I enthusiastically encourage you to try the Rice and Beans recipe from Eat, Drink and be Vegan. I modified it a little bit, adding half an orange bell pepper and 1/2 c. frozen corn kernels. I also used chicken broth instead of vegetable broth since that's what we had on hand. Very delicious, but beware, because it makes "four" VERY generous portions (we got 6). Even though I am not vegan, I checked out that cookbook from the library a while ago and found a lot of great recipes. I would love my own copy because I only got to copy down a few especially enticing ideas.

I have a fantastic Freaky Food Friday for you today, too! I have been looking for this particular product FOREVER since seeing it on the other Emily's blog this summer. I had just about given up hope of ever locating them in Utah, when I spotted them at a local natural foods store:

Kelp Noodles!


Yipeeeeeeee!!! I was so, so pumped to try these, but upon opening the bag,

I made the mistake of taking a big whiff---ick!! Like sea water and brine. Of course! Luckily, I am not one to let a little weird smell deter me from my plans ( this IS freaky food, after all!).

After rinsing them very well and steaming them for a few minutes in the microwave, I topped them with garlic powder, chunky tomato marinara sauce , two extra lean meatballs and a sprinkling of Parmesan.

Not bad! Although the texture was not really similar at all to traditional pasta--kind of chewy and oddly crunchy--I thought it tasted just fine and was a perfectly reasonable substitute. If any of you have ever tried the tofu shirataki noodles, they reminded me a lot of those. I used to think those things were so cool before I discovered my soy sensitivity. Now I know why they gave me such a bad tummy ache!

No problems at all with the kelp noodles, though. The stats were really interesting, too. Actually, there almost were NO stats! A four ounce serving only has 6 calories and the only ingredients are kelp, sodium alginate (sodium salt extracted from a brown seaweed), and water. The only other component of nutrition was 15% DV of calcium.

I don't know that I'll be eating these on a regular basis because they are pretty expensive (plus I am pretty sure D wouldn't touch them with a 10-ft pole), but they were really fun to try!

Some other fun things I have been keeping myself busy with:

Making Fruity Pebbles treats for my little Sunday School class. Ok and let's be honest, for Dustin, too :) Look at how cool that picture is though! I have to admit that I snuck some Fruity Pebbles into my greek yogurt, and holy cow those puppies are SWEET!! Even against the sour tang of the yogurt, they were almost too much. Wow. Do people really eat those for breakfast? Dang. I'm not saying it wasn't delicious though!

I have also been making an attempt to work out my brain as much as I work out my body--


D got me a subscription to our local newspaper for our anniversary. This may not seem very romantic to most, but he knows me so well! Usually, the only source of real news I get is from the Today show, so it's nice to be able to keep informed on public affairs. Plus, I used to love getting the morning paper and reading the comics and doing the crosswords every day when I was growing up. Now, I love the ads and the Sunday coupons, too! Lucky girl, I got a 12 week subscription and I feel enriched already!

I am making a concerted effort to read more as well, but sometimes it really does hurt my brain too much after a long day. reading is seriously my all time favorite hobby next to cooking, but these books aren't' exactly as light and fluffy as the Sookie Stackhouse novels I've been hooked on! Jenny Scheaffer's new book, Goodbye Ed, Hello Me, is incredible and even better than her first offering (Life Without Ed). Unfortunately sometimes it really hits me in terms of my recovery and I have to take a break from reading it in order to process.

I also love this Malcolm Gladwell book, The Tipping Point. Yeas, I know it's old and you've probably already read it, but it is so interesting! Sadly, I don't think I hold any of the qualities he elaborates on just yet, so it kind of makes me feel like a loser. I am only a few chapters in though!
More fun things!

I got this most adorable mug at Target the other day and I am completely in love! I collected polar bears when I was younger, plus it's pink, plus it has a heart on it! And it holds tea! What could be more perfect? Ha ha! I love that my birthday is in February because everything in the stores is pink with hearts, so I feel like it's all decorated just for me! ( I wonder how it is possible to simultaneously be 82 and 12 at the same time--old lady and little pink princess!)

Speaking of hearts, my hottie friend Janetha B is holding a sweet Valentine's Day exchange, so don't forget to sign up and spread the love!

Special K is also caring and sharing again with a tea exchange (you KNOW i was all over that one!), so check that one out too!

I really will be posting more frequently to avoid the textbook-sized entries, so thanks for sticking this one through til the end :)

Questions: Are you closer to 82 or 12 yourself? I think it's hilarious that I would rather spend Saturday night at home with my crossword and mug of tea and at the same time die over anything that is pink and foufy. That's just me :) And you now know I used to collect polar bears--what about you? Any kiddie collections you may or may not still have an affinity for?

Happy Friday! (AND Happy End of this Post--you really are a trooper!) xoxo

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