Uncategorized – barefootgirl in the kitchen

granola dreams.

August 19, 2011 2 Comments

Last night I had dreams.

many of them.

They started put fairly painless but then some of them turned into nightmares. You know those night mares where you open your mouth to scream and you try with all of your pretty little heart & no sound comes out?

Yup. Those.

I kept having one occuring dream that everyone was trying to face time me ( video chat for those of you who have never heard of this like I hadn’t until last week) on my phone while I was sleeping. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t keep my eyes closed.. I was trying to figure out who was trying to watch me at 2:23 am.

Here is the weird part… Fenway had nightmares too! She was wimpering & crying & running away from something… strange coincidence?

or Something else?

*insert Twilight Zone theme song here*

For the record.. mr. barefoot just snored through the whole crazy whirlwind of dreams going on around him.

This sure wasn’t any horror movie because when then morning came, we were all alive and in our beds..

and if our heads spun around in the middle of the night, well, we wouldn’t have known because they were facing the right way when we made our way to the kitchen for some

Granola 🙂

everything is better with granola.

I said so.

I recently came across a book Clean Food by Terry Walters. I looked at mr. barefoot with my big green eyes while we were poking around Borders going out of business sale (BIG time BOO to that) and next thing I new, the book was coming home with me.

I did what every cool person does on a Sunny Sunday afternoon. I planted my dupa on the couch & read it cover to cover. Good Stuff. It clarifies in detail all that is clean food,(hence, the title) meaning minimally processed AND she breaks it up with recipes season by season for the freshest ingredients year-round

BRILLIANT!

I came across her recipe for Maple Nut Granola and since I’m such a NUT myself I put on my pants & ran right out & bought puffed rice (the only ingredient that I didn’t have in my pantry) and got right to work on it

btw~ puffed rice.. $1.59 for a big honking box!

Maple Nut Granola

4 cups rolled oats

2 cups crispy brown rice cereal

1 1⁄2 cups toasted sunflower seeds

1 1⁄2 cups shredded dried coconut

1 cup sliced almonds, pecans or cashews ( I used walnuts )

1 cup raisins

2+ tablespoons cinnamon

3⁄4 cup canola oil ( I used 1/2 canola oil & 1/4 cup coconut oil)

3⁄4 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon almond extract ( I used vanilla…. because that’s what I had…)

Preheat oven to 250°F.

Mix together all dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, syrup and almond extract. Pour wet mixture over dry and combine.

Transfer granola to 9 x 12-inch glass casserole and spread evenly. Place on top rack of oven and bake 30 minutes. Mix to ensure even baking and prevent raisins from burning and bake another 30 minutes or until golden.

(I used a foil lined cookie sheet. I ended up dumping the whole mix on the sheet & finished mixing it right on the sheet..)

(I stirred it with a big wooden spoon about every 15 minutes )

Remove from oven and cool completely to set. Store in airtight container.

Makes 10 cups

so yeah… some home made granola, with berries & greek yogurt

much better than trying to escape my stalkers at 2am.

seriously… stop watching me sleep… it’s a little bit weird. just a little *giggle*

plus, you need to get to the groc for some puffed rice!

smooches!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

tofu newbie

August 15, 2011 1 Comment

Yup. that’s me! A dear friend of mine encouraged me to try tofu a few months back. I’ll be honest… I was scared.

Really, it doesn’t look all that appetizing. Then again, many foods dont prior to preparing right?

right.

A few of you may know that I participated in a 21(plus) -day cleanse earlier this summer. Without getting into too many details (other than it was the single best thing that I’d ever done for myself) the idea was that over a 3 week period of time, I eliminated foods from my diet until I was down to eating only raw foods, then I chose to also do the optional 7 day liquid/ juice part. After the 7 days I slowly added foods back in, giving my body 3 full days to adjust to each food.

Why am I sharing this with you? Because meat was the last thing that I added back in (only in extreme moderation and I’m seriously considering eliminating it permanently)

So I’ve been exploring other protein options. And Tofu just keeps popping up in so many recipes!

I’ve done quite a bit of reading about the different kinds and how to prepare it and I’ve found 2 excellent tutorials.. (forgive me for those friends of mine who follow these ladies’ blogs & have already seen these)

Emily\’s crispy tofu and Mama Pea\’s broiled tofu

psst……. Mama Pea just released a wonderful COOKBOOK! last week.. I highly recommend it 😉

I just cooked up the crispy tofu to top my salad for lunch and it was a winner!

Once I sauteed it & put it on my salad I just drizzled it with a bit of balsamic vinegar & evoo.

Spot. On.

I see this appearing on plate with many different flavor combinations in the future!

as for Mama’s broiled tofu recipe….. that’s tomorrow night’s dinner already marinating 🙂

Onto other business. This blog began when Scott & I decided to join a local organic CSA last year. Our farmers Dave and Sasha from Plato\’s Harvest Organic Farm were not able to run a CSA this summer.

No worries! we still visit them each Thursday at the Plymouth Farmer\’s Market. The veggies are just as delicious as they were last summer & I still look forward to getting my goodies and coming home to play with new ways to prepare and enjoy them!

My point is that I’m considering re-naming the blog. I’m re-considering a lot these days….

anyone else realize how I ramble ?

If you haven’t tried tofu and want to…the crispy tofu is a great way to start…. I’m off to prepare dinner!

ciao!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: cleanse, salad, tofu

today.

August 10, 2011 Leave a Comment

I made a home-made face mask with a recipe that I found on the internet

1 Tablespoon old fashioned oats, ground

1 Tablespoon Yogurt ( plain non-fat Greek yogurt)

a squirt of honey

I mixed it all up & slathered it on my face & let dry for a little over 10 minutes.

Best.

Mask.

Ever.

my skin feels AH MAZE ING!

so there ya go.. I not only can keep myself out of my kitchen, but now I’m concocting potions for my skin like I’m some kind of back woods woman.

I wish.

oh, and I strongly resisted the urge to lick the mask. I have the willpower of a snake. Clearly.

dinner tonight is Vegetarian Paella.

miss me??

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: honey, oatmeal, yogurt

Creamy Orange Avocado dressing

March 24, 2011 Leave a Comment

While at whole foods this past week, there were stations sampling different items. One woman had a spinach salad with this dressing. It is delicious & has No oil in it!! (Of course there still is the fat from the avocado) It makes such a creamy tasty dressing.

3 green onions; trimmed

1/2 avocado, peeled & pitted

1/2 cup orange juice

( I also added a handful of parsley, but the original recipe didn’t call for it)

Seas salt & pepper to taste.

Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender & blend. I used this.

I’ve been making this & tossing it with baby spinach, a bit of fruit ( last night was sliced strawberries, but I’ve also used orange segments as well ) a tablespoon or so of sunflower seeds and some finely chopped red onion.

yum!

Calories~ 60

Fat~4

Carb~6

Fiber~2

Protein~1

Filed Under: Uncategorized

not grown up

December 24, 2010 Leave a Comment

at all.

In my last post I eluded the I was a 7 year-old at heart. Ryan actually disagreed with me informing me that I am actually 6. This was clear yesterday morning when i saw a piece on the news that showed that Santa had taken his reindeer for a quick spin around the North Pole and then went back to help the elves finish up their business.

This is it, the biggest night in a child’s year, Christmas Eve!

I spent some time earlier this week cleaning my bedroom. When the room was clean & the bags of outgrown clothes were ready to be donated, I looked around my room & realized something…

my room is full of toys. At 40 years old, I still have many toys in my bedroom.

my beloved authentic framed Springsteen poster

a framed winnie the pooh card that a dear friend gave me when I moved many years ago

my wonder woman figurine collection ( each Year Scott germs me something Wonder Woman.. he thinks I’m wonder woman)

see?

last year I opened this .. I’ve heard stories of how he fought for this on Ebay…

there is my collection of special stuffed animals….

my Cinderella band-aide camera

*a few years ago I had a dream that I was hanging out in bleachers above New Bedford & wanted to take a picture of the rooftops, but I was afraid to lose my good camera so I pulled out my ‘Cinderella band aid camera’*

Scott & Ali decided to actually make me one , and somehow Santa found it & put it in the toe of my stocking…

Could I even make this stuff up??

Now you may be wondering, poor Scott….. until you look at his collections..

one of my Pepe’s many boats that he built

His space Shuttle figurine that topped his 40th birthday cake

his Chewbacca figurine ( he is not only a huge Star Wars fan, but we had a wonderful Affenpincher named Chewy… )

my Polar Express toys…

because it’s my very favorite book in the whole wide world…..

and I get to read it tonight!!

so when I tell you that I would squeal in excitement if Santa put a barbie in my stocking tonight or that I really am hoping to find this under my tree in the morning, I would not be fibbing even my one little bit.

I’m never going to grow up. And I’m ok with that 😉

So, Merry Christmas, my friends…. I hope that you find the magic of Christmas within yourselves tonight & for the rest of your lives…

I believe… do you?

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Happy Chanukah!

December 1, 2010 4 Comments

To my Jewish friends out there… and Happy December to my dear sweet friend spending time in Greece 🙂

Look what Farkle brought us!!! He is too good to us!!

Ryan ( who really likes bubble wrap ) asked me if I could make him a bubble wrap Advent calendar.

Ok.. so it is a pathetic attempt, but I tried!

For today’s recipe I went waaaay back into my old recipe cards.

wasn’t my handwriting so innocent & sweet back in the early 90s?

I do not remember where I got the recipe from. Back then (way before I had the internet) I used to love Sunday mornings because PBS had cooking shows on all morning. I would curl up on the couch with my tea & a big yellow pad of paper that Scott would have snagged from work & copy down recipe after recipe.

*my* version of today’s Food Network

I remember not know what Mandelbrot was and since we didn’t have the internet, I never actually knew. I remember thinking that I was all trendy when I had actually heard of Biscotti a few years later.. It sounded like my Mandelbrot recipe!!

Well, when I dug it out today I discovered that it is actually a Jewish cookie! How appropriate & ironic that this is the cookie that I chose for today !

The Recipe:

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons Cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup pecan halves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rub a baking sheet with oil ( I use a silpat liner, but still rubbed it with oil).

In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, oil & vanilla for 2 mintues on low speed , stopping to scrape down the side of the bowl with a spatula.

SLowly add the flour, cocoa, baking soda & salt. Mix until incorporated. Mix in the nuts & chips just until the nuts slightly break up.

Spoon the dough onto the oil-lined cookie sheet & divide in half. Using your hands, mold each half into 2 flat logs 12×4.

Bake for 40 mintues.

Remove from oven & let cool for 5 mintues

Carefully transfer strips to a cutting board& using a serrated knife, cut the strips on a diagonal into 1/2 inch slices.

(when you cut them, you will have pieces crumble off, this is to be expected and welcomed)

WHY you ask?

so that you can collect it to sprinkle on ice cream or oatmeal 😉

Place slices cut side down on cookie sheet & bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove & cool.

Store in an airtight container.

or dip & eat right away

~oxox

happy december!

Filed Under: cookies, Farkle, Uncategorized Tagged With: chocolate, cocoa, eggs, flour, pecan, sugar

are you ready for some COOKIES????

November 30, 2010 1 Comment

barefootgirlcookies 2009

Bring on 2010!!!!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

the easiest cranberry sauce. ever.

November 24, 2010 2 Comments

Thant’s right, folks, easy peasy. I’m not talkin’ about use your can opener to crack open a jellied can, I’m talkin’ the real shabang

First I’d like to share that I live smack dab in the middle of cranberry country. I sort of took for granted that these wonderful little berries are harvest literally right around the corner from me.

When I went to J& W a few years back, we were talking about cranberries and was surprised at how few people knew that they were grown in bogs.

In the fall the bogs are flooded and a big machine ( can you tell that I don’t know the technical terms? ) causes the bog to vibrate which loosens the that the cranberries so that they float.

then they pull them altogether

and another machine comes & takes the berries out

they get hauled away to where they are packaged & shipped to your store.

After they have been harvested, we take a small colander, go scoop out a bit what is left behind, then come home & separate it from the leaves & debris

we then rinse & drain them well

and viola! cranberries!

Chances are if you drink cranberry juice or eat jellied cranberry sauce and it’s from Ocean Spray, the cranberries came from my neck of the woods 🙂

So here is my recipe for cranberry sauce. this was handed down to me form a client of mine ( I used to be a cosmetologist in my other life)

You will need :

1 bag of cranberries

1 Naval ( seedless) orange

1 cup of white sugar

a food processor

rinse the berries & add to the bowl of the food processor

Zest the orange & add it to the bowl of the processor

peel the pith from the orange & discard

Section the orange & also add to the party

end with 1 cup of white sugar.

Pulse the processor for a few turns until the mixture looks like this

*note* it will still be a bit gritty…. the sugar hasn’t dissolved yet

add to a jar and let refrigerate for at least one hour..

and there ya have it!

yum 🙂

ironically, while typing up this post, an old friend of mine called me to ask me for ” the recipe for that wonderful cranberry sauce that you used to make”

funny, eh?

on a side note, although I do not think that this can be processed, if you put it in decorative jars & keep refrigerated, it makes a wonderful gift 🙂

Ok.. it is officially BIG COOKING DAY!!!!

the brine for our bird, Tomas, is on the stove

*in the brine*

1 cup KOSHER salt

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 chopped clementines

Thyme, Sage & Peppercorns

my fuzzy socks are on, my kitchen is calling my name, and I just finished my breakfast of freshly roasted pumpkin seeds and overly strong coffee ( Scott’s home today 🙂 )