Magical drawing, backyard foraging, and GLV history.

In the wee hours of this morning, when I was dutifully with the before school children, I was given a delightful surprise! E, our writer-in-residence announced that she would draw me something. 

From her brain came the fortune telling owl. How succinct. She is the most inquisitive, creative, soulful 7 year old, I have ever met.  This gem is getting framed. 

When my students are off in their classrooms, I head home to my lavender house.  The rest of my morning and early afternoon was spent in a rather inspired fashion, I finished a two year old jewelry project and foraged for wild edibles in my backyard. 

These two butterflies were found while out hiking and have been waiting patiently for this new life. I'm having trouble deciding which one to give my mom for Mother's Day. 

Violets for jam.
Viola Sororia

I then collected wood violets from my yard. At the very beginning of Spring, we had the pleasure of seeing Siberian squill covering our backyard and now we have carpets of violets. I love this house and even though there are many, many hours of yard work that have yet to be done, I am thrilled by it all. Good riddance, Gaslight Village! No longer do I need to worry about minions chemically spraying, trampling,  or mowing over my green spaces. I am the steward of this land. 

After seven months, I finally went on a recon mission to our old place. Not all of my plants had been destroyed by the new sidewalk, as I had feared. At first, I wanted to dig up every single one of my plants but now I'm going to just liberate my bleeding heart and my ghost fern, if it reappears. The installation of that sidewalk and the shock of seeing my garden destroyed, was the catalyst for us to finally move out of a teeny albeit magical treehouse and into a real house.  So, thanks, Universe. You're a tricky one. 

Stay tuned, my audience of one? two? for the completion of the violet jam. 

Lavender House among the squill.
Scilla Siberica

Cream of Nettle Soup

Stinging nettles have a horrible reputation. It is warranted and the name says it all. Stinging. They will definitely sting you and you will not like it. The way I avoided it was by using scissors. I cut the stalk and then used the scissors like tongs and placed them in the bowl. It was a painless experience. 

After the nettles have been boiled, they lose their stinging hairs and become nutritious greens. They are especially rich in Calcium and Vitamin A.

Here is the recipe I used:

 http://www.food.com/recipe/cream-of-nettle-soup-vegan-9469

I used original flavor coconut milk and I wouldn't recommend it. The coconut flavor is too sweet for this type of soup. Also, don't do what I did and add too much water. Follow the recipe. 

Anniversary

C and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary today! I had prepped the table and was only missing flowers. When he walked in, he was carrying a bouquet! It is funny how in sync we can be.

A few of my students made us Anniversary cards/ drawings. So sweet.

The desserts were made by Sweet Raw Joy out of Cedar Rapids, IA. 

Papaya. strawberries.

cakes. 

Trail Mix

Edamame 

Almonds

Raisins 

Walnuts

Ginger Chew

        Cheers to us!

Hey! It's Monday's lunch.

fruit salad 

raisins 

date roll

fig newman 

dessert hummus + plantain chips

THERESA'S FRUIT SALAD

cantaloupe

grapes

strawberries

peaches 

cucumber

fresh basil

raisins

I'm not sure if it's a thing or not but putting cucumbers in a fruit salad as well as the basil

tastes great! TRUST ME. 

Vegetable Geeks: a short-lived incarnation.

My first attempt at blogging came when I was invited to contribute to the Little Village website under the moniker, Vegetable Geeks. I wrote a couple of decent posts and then let it drop to the wayside like so many other projects. Click the links if you're interested in reading what I had to say back in 2010.

1.

Featured on the front page. :)
Broccoli Casserole Recipe: http://littlevillagemag.com/vegetable-geeks-my-comfort-food/

Dearly departed, Yoyo. 

2.

Woodland booty. 

Chicken of the Woods Noodle Soup.

http://littlevillagemag.com/vegetable-geeks-chicken-of-the-woods-noodle-soup/

3.

Baklava
http://littlevillagemag.com/baklava-for-the-sweet-tooth/

The Bent & Dent in Kalona, IA

My sister-friends, Sandy and Lisa.

I went on a glorious grocery shopping spree in Kalona, IA. The place is called Central Discount and it's such a fun place to hunt for awesome deals. It's mainly meant for the Amish community but people from all walks of life are drawn to this place for it's low, low prices. That's where the nickname the Bent & Dent comes in. Everything in the store is either damaged in some way or past its 'sell by' date.

There was a wide assortment of products and brands. I ended up finding many organic brands and food stuffs I see at the Co-op which I snatched right up. I personally avoid canned goods but found many other items of interest, mainly beverages and snacks. It's going to be so much easier packing my lunches for work now!

Central Discount is ran by Amish people and therefore only accept cash or check. The store is open three days a week Saturday, Monday and Wednesday. Get there right at 10 a.m. to try and beat the rush.

Other noteworthy stops in Kalona, IA: Stringtown Grocery and SISTERS GARDEN! 

My $37 haul:

Glug glug glug.
Look for oddities like this bottle of cashew fruit nectar.

.25¢ - $1.25

Haven't seen these since Puerto Rico.
YUM!
.50¢ 

Nice package.
.75¢ 

Sprouts: A How-To Guide.

Lentils: First Stage. 

So far, I have sprouted mung beans and lentils but there are various other beans and seeds that can be sprouted. My next sprouting adventure will be broccoli seeds from the New Pioneer Food Co-op. 

Even if you don't have much of a green thumb, sprouting beans is pretty much foolproof. What I love most about sprouting is the easiness and the quick yield. It's especially great having fresh food stuffs in the winter time.

Mung Beans

What you will need:

cheesecloth 

rubberband

mason jar / large jar 

1/4 C lentils or mung

1. Rinse your beans and soak them overnight or for at least 4 hours. Fill jar so that the water covers all of the beans. 

2. Drain the beans through the cheesecloth and fill the jar again. Shake and drain the water.

3. Repeat the rinsing every morning and every night for about 5 days or until desired length of 

sprouts.  

4. Remove cheesecloth. Store in fridge in an airtight container, preferably glass.

5. Cook sprouts in stir fry, throw them on salads, sandwiches, etc. 

Mung Beans: Day 2

Mung Beans: Day 3

I switched to a bigger jar!

Mung Sprouts! Day 5