Mixed Salad with Yogurt Tahini Dressing from "It's All Good"

At one point or another, we have all said something along these lines, "Sure I could look like Gwyneth Paltrow, if I had her money and could hire a nutritionist, trainer, a nanny and a staff to clean the house."  All of that stuff is true but thankfully, Ms. Paltrow is putting the recipes on full display so we can at least know what to eat.  I was not planning on picking up her new cookbook, "It's All Good", because frankly, her Marie Antoinette musings are a bit much.  However, I was out and about on a random weekend, had a little time to kill before a dinner reservation and decided to stop by Barnes & Noble.  Her cookbook was sitting front and center on that table they have at the entrance of every Barnes & Noble on the face of the earth.  I picked it up and after looking through the recipes, was intrigued.  

Melissa Clark's "Stupendous" Hummus

I don't know what I did wrong with other hummus attempts but they all tasted like plaster, or as how I imagine plaster would taste.

Enter, Melissa Clark.  She made a good case against using canned chickpeas and gave directions for cooking the dried variety in heavily salted water with several garlic cloves.  Then she goes on to gently suggest that peeling each individual pea might bring the hummus to yet another level of "stupendous".  Really, Melissa?  Each individual pea?  A tedious undertaking for sure but then I realized that this is a great way to busy the hands while, say, quizzing your 7 year old on his spelling words.  Surely more economical than going to websites that just make me want to spend money I do not have.  

Stumptown

Japanese Garden

How I got this far in life without experiencing the weirdness and beauty that is Oregon is beyond me.

My attempt to describe this liberal fantasyland will be with bullets. When you know you might be in Stumptown/Portland/PDX:

• You might be in Stumptown when you pack on 10 pounds in 5 days.  Food Trucks, Voodoo Donuts,  Little Bird Bistro, Beer (and I don't even drink beer!), Wine.  Not only are the food and beverages perfection but, wait, it is affordable!  Cocktail in Portland, $8 vs. Chicago for $16.  Tab for the dinners that made me swoon, $28...with tip.  Freaking food lover's nirvana out there.
• You might be in Oregon when you take 30,000 steps (my pedometer said so) in one day hiking trails along the Columbia River Gorge and Mt. Hood and only saw a fraction of the trails Oregon has to offer.
• You might be in Portland when the tattoo on your ankle looks downright conservative.  Holy ink, folks.  
• You also might be in Portland when like the ink, the piercing in your belly and ears are quaint.  A lot of holes and stretched ear lobes out there.
• You might be in Portland when you cannot walk a block without getting solicited by multiple panhandlers, The Nature Conservancy and a political campaign.
• You might be in Portland when you hate your car and the Chicago EL after experiencing the cleanliness, quiet and convenience of the Portland public transportation system.  The fare cards are basically on the honor system and the trains glide quietly up to you on the street.  Blissful.
• You might be in Portland when you are looking at a map at 7:00 A.M. and someone asks ever so kindly, "Can I help you find something? I live here." You say, "Great! Yes!  I am looking for a coffee shop."  The person replies, "Oh, I don't know any coffee shops.  I save money and bring my own coffee."    
• You might be in Portland when you get bemused looks when you cross the street when the red hand on the walk signal is on yet there are no cars coming.
• Finally, you might be in Portland when you think you might be living an episode of Portlandia.  That show is no spoof.

Japanese Garden

Multnomah Falls

Root Beer Bundt Cake

Root Beer Bundt Cake

I have a mad crush.  My crush, or I should say crushes, and I are separated by several states but really, why should that stop me?  We share a love of all things sweet and traveling to destinations solely based on cuisine.  If those commonalities are not enough, I am sure we can survive on my infatuation with their cookbooks.  I am talking of course about Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito.  I have now made several recipes from their “Baked” books and I am smitten.

Deviled Eggs

Deviled Eggs

One of the issues with trying to be what I like to call, a "week-day vegan", is my little guy and his animal food palate.  I have been able to switch him to Almond Milk without fuss and he is ok with the veggie dinners, but take away his deviled eggs and there will be tears.  That said, a part of me likes that he loves what I consider to be an adult appetizer.  I have an image of kids who try deviled eggs having the same reaction as Tom Hanks in "Big" when he tries Caviar for the first time.  Priceless scene.

So this one is for my kid.  Happy munching.

Donut "Cake" Tower

My little guy turned 7 years old today and as you can see, I did not do the big birthday bash cake, decorations and cute little favors which so many other bloggers seem to do with Martha Stewart perfection.  And guess what?  The birthday boy thought the donut tower was the coolest thing he had ever seen.  Ahhh, kids...this is one of the many reasons we love them so much.  They love us even when we are less than perfect.

Happy Birthday, my little man.

Tranquil Garden

This is my Mom's garden.  I never appreciated how beautiful it was until I had been out of the house for several years.  We moved to the neighborhood in 1987 and I hated my parents for moving me away from my friends as I was heading into Middle School.  The transition was very difficult.  As is the case with most young girl relationships, one week I had friends, the next week I was one level below pond scum.  Brutal.

The good news is that I survived, barely.  I now love this garden and appreciate it's beauty and tranquil nature.  My Mom is retired and spends more time in this garden than the insects.  My Mom used to tell me that beauty takes work.  She was referring to me but that attitude also applies to her garden.