Spiralizers, Noodles, and Quick Meals

I will have 2 posts today!  This first one is foods I have been eating lately.  I've really been on the Zucchini Noodles hardcore the last few weeks and I don't see an end in sight!  I've had the Spirooli for at least 2 years now and I like it BUT since getting my newest appliance I can now say I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Joyce Chen Spiral Slicer even more!  I used the Joyce Chen when I did these noodles shown!  I think I like it better because they make a thinner and more consistent noodle with less effort and it's even easier to clean!

I've been messing around with several raw sauces and will be posting them over at The Raw Food World NEWS Recipe Section in the near future!

I have had several days over the past few weeks were I have had about 5 minutes to make something if I was going to eat anything at all other than fruit!  I've even been a lacking in the greens department!  Oye!

So I remember buying some of the Wegman's Brand Chickpeas that were already flavored.  The flavor was Marsala and they were pretty good!  I have them pictured here over brown rice.  It's a very light brown rice but it's still brown rice.

I'm still in the process of trying to pack my foods for the day in my car.  My mom had an extra cooler bag which will work nicely until I find a larger one at a better price.  I saw a YouTube video that John Kohler did a while back with a Coleman Cooler that plugged into your car and was like a refrigerator which was awesome but I haven't seen one locally yet!  Video is posted at this end of this post so check it out!

As for this elbow mac dish it didn't turn out the best but it was still edible.  I really wanted it to be thicker and creamier.

I used Corn Pasta and for the sauce a combo of almond milk, 6 cherry tomatoes, spinach, soy flour, minced garlic, hemp seeds, and topped with Vegan Chipotle Parmesan.

I had a bit of a surprise over the weekend that I will be sharing with you later today!  So be sure to stop back!

Now take a look at this video that is from OKRAW's YouTube Channel.  If you aren't familiar with the YouTuber - that is John Kohler!

CousCous Craziness!

By the time I got home each night last week I was 'spent'.  All I could ask myself was "What's quicker than Pasta?"  As you know Pasta's pretty FAST but I didn't even want to make that.  So I ended up doing CousCous TWICE last week.  One night I used the left over Chunk Tomato Marinara and mixed it together to create this first one.  It was pretty YUMMY if I do say so myself!

As for this 2nd CousCous Creation...here's what I did...
2 Garlic Cloves
1 T Grapeseed Oil
1 T Wildtree Dill Blend
3 T Lemon Juice
3 T Balsamic

Totally jam-packed with flavor and very filling!  I didn't eat the 'greatest' last week but I have to say I am quite proud of these two attempts!

Garden Diet, Blogging Buddies, Quick Meals, NEW Wildtree Products, The Furkids, & Chajin

Yesterday I wrote about my salads and the leftover dressing I added to them and today I have photos for you!  I also took one with Nutritional Yeast over top of the dressing but I think you get the idea.  My favorite part of this is how colorful it is!  LOVE the colors in food!

I'm inspired by other people when it comes to Juices, Smoothies, Dressings, and other Home Made Foods.  Two of my favorites are Opal and Christine.  I would recommend these two blogs to anyone!  Both of these ladies are wonderful people - very nice - knowledgeable - and compassionate!  They are very hard workers and busy gals but always drop by to say HI on my blog!  I LOVE that!  And I want to thank them both for being such good blogging buddies!  Christine has been ROCKIN' the Avocado Dressings lately and I finally took the step to try one of my own!  I'm glad I did!  Now I am looking forward to my next attempt!

And it was Opal who originally introduced (virtually) me to Storm and Jinjee and I have been following them on Social Media for about 5 or 6 years now.  I get their emails and updates and have learned a lot from them both!  They have a beautiful family!  This morning I received on of the emails from them with a special deal in it.  In short, I could get 22 of their eBooks for just $19 - as well as some of their fave recipes and lifetime access to their Message Board/Site.  After some thought I decided to take that step, too!  I went ahead and tapped into my secret stash and bought the $19 package!  Read more about what that includes HERE.

Lately I have been adding Organic Lemon Juice to my water!  I know it sounds easy enough and it is.  Lemon is detoxifying, helps fight bacteria, helps fight pain and inflammation, and much more!   I want to do at least 1 large glass a day of this.  Throughout the day I drink plain water and various teas and herbal tonics.  I have also been increasing my smoothies and I do like juicing on occasion, too!  Other than those things I don't really drink much else.  (As a treat some wine or crafted ale).

Yesterday I also told you about the Vegan Mac & Cheese I did and how I had SO MUCH left over Vegan Cheese Sauce!  Well, last night I made some White Rice (I usually use other rices and haven't been using as much White Rice Lately but I am trying to use what little I have left to get some more shelf space cleared as well as more empty Mason Jars). 

Anyhow...

I made this Vegan Cheesy Rice & Veggies Dish with the sauce I had left over!  I used some mixed veggies, here, as well!  It was a super simple and QUICK dish and I had it for an early lunch today.

Last week we 'got word' of a few new products that will be available in our Wildtree Line including 3 USDA Organic Drink Mixers and 2 Seasonings.  They will be on the website and available for purchase this weekend!  I haven't tried them yet but I have had a lot of people comment on them! 

I'm also very excited to see the new LABELS and LABELING that Wildtree is rolling out!  VERY EXCITING!  Again, we are rearing up for tomorrow's tasting and pairing at Liberty Winery in Sheridan, NY, and it's going to be a GREAT TIME!

I was so happy to get some mail from Japan today!  I received Sayama Aracha Sencha Green Tea from Yunomi.us produced from the Morita Family Tea Garden in Japan.  Along with it I received this note!  I'm so excited to be Chajin AKA "tea person" or "Lover of Tea".  I will be reviewing this and other teas over at the Sororitea Sisters Website that I co-founded with my Sororitea Sister Anne a few years ago!

Last night the "furkids" were being even CUTER than usual so of course I had to snap some quick pictures on my iPhone.

Here is Paco!  What a HAM!  He's sitting on the Love Seat all in a perfect circle.  He does this when he gets tired at the end of the day...right before bed.

I tried to get photos of the cats but Charlie was sleeping and it turned out fuzzy and Gabby was in the dark and I didn't want to interrupt her slumber either.  Soon, tho, I will have a CAT Day!

Riley has been doing pretty good after his oral surgery!  His panting isn't as bad and thankfully his breath isn't as bad either.  SOON I will be getting Parsley from my mother's herb garden and giving them each a little bit each night.  Parsley is a great Breath Freshener.

After I took Paco's photo on the Love Seat - Riley barged thru - so I had to take a photo of him on the Love Seat!  I swear they are totally like human children!  "Mom...he took my seat!"

:)

The leader of the pack - Suzie - prefers being up HIGH so she was the rebel and jumped up on the back of the Love Seat and sat there. 

For an older lady - she is still quite the SPIT FIRE.

So there are some updates and photos on the "kids"...but not before Paco gets his last word in - with a 2nd photo!

So...what are your plans for the weekend?

What dishes did you make this past week that you were happy with?

Any mini-goals for the next week?

Who are some bloggers and buddies that inspire you?  What are their websites/URLs?  I would love to pay them a visit!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend, everyone!  Drop me a note!