Spice Up Your Life

It's a beautiful day today... The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and a gentle breeze is blowing... Feels like spring!

But if that's not sweet enough for you, how about a moist, chocolate-y cookie? And if that's still not enough, how about one spiced up with a little cayenne pepper and espresso?



The Chocolate Cookie with a Kick

3 oz unsweetened chocolate*
2 cup (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup Earth Balance (or something similar)
1/4 cup flaxseeds
12 tablespoons of water
1 cup + 2 TB natural sugar
3 and 1/2 teaspoons ground dark roast coffee beans, such as Italian-roast
3/4 cup 50/50 whole wheat/uninriched, unbleached white flour
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper**
1/3 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 on convection bake. Spray two cookie sheets with Pam or the like and set aside.

Melt the unsweetened chocolate, one cup of the chocolate chips, and the Earth Balance (either in the microwave- be careful not to burn it! use 15 to 20 second intervals- or on the stove top). Stir until smooth and creamy. Set aside. Mix the flax seeds and water and let sit for 2-3 minutes. Then, in a large bowl, mix them with the sugar, cayenne pepper, coffee grounds, and beat with an electric mixer. Add in the chocolate mixture, beat, and just stir in the flour, salt, baking powder and nuts, if using. Mix in the remaining chocolate chips last.

Drop teaspoonfuls of the dough onto the cookie sheets, about three inches apart. Bake them in the oven for about 11 minutes, take them out, and let sit for about three before attempting to remove them. Transfer the cookies onto cooling racks, and taste if you dare. Be sure to keep a glass of soy milk near by, if needed.

*Not semi-sweet or anything like that. Try to find 100% cacao.
**Be warned. These will be spicy, and they only get spicier. If you desire only a little kick (wimp), use 1/2 teaspoon.

Jamaican Stew

Jamaican Stew

I slightly changed this recipe, so it's not exactly authentic. It still tastes great to me and it's a whizz to prepare. All you need is one slow cooker (crock pot, no other pans required) and you're good to go!

Careful, your whole house will smell of this wonderful island stew.

-3 cloves of garlic (less or more depending on what you like... I, personally, love garlic)
-2 cups of carrots, sliced any way you like
-1 leek, medium sliced on a diagonal
-1 sweet potato, chopped
-1 can of diced tomatoes (drain out some, but not all, of the liquid)
-2 teaspoons curry powder
-1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
-1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or how ever much you want, but I warn you, they are hot!
-1/4 teaspoon allspice
-fresh black pepper
-1 can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
-1 cup soy milk OR 1 unsweetened can light coconut milk
-1 cup water OR vegetable broth

Add the garlic, carrots, leeks, sweet potato, and tomatoes to the cooker. Stir in the curry, thyme, red pepper flakes, allspice, and pepper. Then, add the kidney beans, "milk," and water or broth. Cover, and cook for six to eight hours.

Serve over brown rice, couscous, or even a piece of toast. Bon appetite!

I got the results back from my science fair project... Outstanding!! (level below the one person who received best in show)

Noodly

Curried Noodle Salad

This is great. I'm sure you could even mix in some green, too, and it would be good.

Two servings of dry rice noodles
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon or so curry paste
1 teaspoon tamari
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 cup soy milk (I even used vanilla)
1 large tomato (or more, if you like)

Start a pot of water to boil. While the water is heating, cleanse the rice noodles by running them under water. Once the water is boiling, add the rice noodles and start to prepare the other ingredients. (If your directions on the rice noodles say one and a half minutes cooking time... they lied. It takes about 5 to eight minutes. Just taste them every once in a while to check for "doneness") Sauté the onions, add the curry paste, tamari, turmeric, and soy milk. Simmer for a minute or two and remove from heat. Stir in the garlic, tomatoes and even some fresh basil if desired. Set aside. The noodles should be done by now. Drain them, and run under cold water until they cool. Add the sauce, let chill for a bit in the fridge, and enjoy.


My Finn Finn is growing up. It's so sad! I remember when he was just this big...



And now he is this big. Granted, you can only see his face, but you can tell he is HUGE.




Now, for the picture I promised. This, this vast nothingness, is where I live (I do not live on a farm, this is the neighbor's place). Exciting, isn't it?

Free as a bird

Now that science fair is over (yay), I have free time.

Free time...

Such foreign words...

I think I need a dictionary.

I heard birds the other day. I can't believe how incredibly excited I am for spring. Warmer weather, flip flops, flowers, green, green, green... What's not to love? Not to mention I can finally ride the Charles. Poor boy. He has been horribly neglected. Bella is a bit of a wimp and can't keep her fingers warm.

I'm going for a bike ride later. I'll take pictures.