Colorful Weekend, Mason Jar Set, Red Pepper Tahini Dressing & Soup Recipes!

This past weekend was a CRAZY BUSY one...but in a good way!  This is my 2nd post for today - so - be sure to scroll down for the other one as to why half of the weekend was NUTS.

This post, however, will include some other things from the weekend.  As well as some items from last week - when I was under the weather.

First off - this selfie I took.  I'm trying to take some more of them because no one takes photos of me and I'm always behind  the photo while taking pics of groups, events, travel, and food.  I'm not very good at selfies but I'm trying!

The main reason for this one is to show off one of my new shirts I got this past weekend.  Yup!  I was able to go on a bit of a shopping spree for clothes, specifically.  I don't often do that but I was PAST Due for some clothes!  I've been pitching a lot of them but I will wear stuff until I literally am not able to any longer.  That and so many more of the clothes I had are 3 sizes too big!


One of the items I scored at Sam's Club a little over a week ago was this 6 piece Mason Jar Set.  I couldn't resist...it was calling to me!  You get all 6 glass mugs with handles, lids, straws, and burlap holder as you see here - but - it also comes with 6 additional straws (photo below).  These are heavy-duty reusable plastic straws.

Online this set is selling for $16.49, I think...but...for some reason I think I only paid $14 and some change for it.  I REALLY Love the way it looks...so bright and fun!  I can't wait to fill them with juices and smoothies!  Here's a pic of the orange one up close!  They are just too cute, aren't they!?

In food related news...

I made some home made raw vegan dressing and it turned out AWESOME!

And it only uses 3 ingredients!  Here's a quick recipe for you!

2 Sweet Red Bell Peppers
1/4 C Lemon Juice
3 T Tahini


I had a large salad last night with the dressing on it.  A few cups of various lettuces, shredded carrots, red cabbage, Green Peppers, Y.E.L.O. Tomatoes, and Hemp Seeds!

While I was eating it all I could think about was how flavorful it was and then I wondered if I could make a soup out of it.  So I did.

After using more than half of it as a dressing I then made a soup by adding the following...

2 T Minced Sun Dried Tomatoes & Garlic
1/4 C Basil

I have to say I was totally impressed with this flavor, too!

The addition of the garlic REALLY pumped it up!  The Sun Dried Tomatoes didn't hurt either.  It makes me want to do more raw(ish) soups VERY soon!

Man & Mac Dressing - Vegan & Rawish!

Over the weekend I made this dressing.  It's Vegan and Raw-ish.  The only non-raw ingredient - the nuts...and here's why...

A while back I bought a back of Onion & Garlic flavored Macadamia Nuts.  I thought I would LOVE them but didn't really.  I didn't want to waste them so I thought I would use them in this dressing.  I'm very glad I did because it turned out AWESOME!

Here's what I did...

1/2 C Mac Nuts
4 Mandarin Oranges
3 Mini Yellow Peppers
Garlic Powder, Turmeric Powder, Ginger Powder to taste.

That's it!  How easy is that!?  VERY Flavorful!  LOVED IT!  Must try this again!  I have another foodie post that I will be sharing soon...it wasn't as successful as this one but I think it has potential.  I didn't want to post it in the same post because it's similar in color - but completely different!

What's the last Dressing you made at home?

Blueberry Sauce, Tomato Tahini Sauce, Crispy Potato Dinner

I tried to get a little cute with this photo - artsy, if you will!  On occasion I have found Nature's Path vegan items on sale and I will pick them up every now and again.  I do like their Chia line.  I actually had this for SNACK last night.  What's that on top - you might ask!?  Well, it was my successful attempt at Blueberry Sauce.  Some might even call it Blueberry Jelly or Jam - vegan style!  It was really quite simple.  And I used all organic ingredients!  A pint of Organic Blueberries, Organic Lemon Juice, and Wholesome Sweeteners Raw Cane Sugar.  Here are the measurements in case you were wondering:

1 Pint Blueberries
1/3 C Raw Cane Sugar
2 teas Lemon Juice

Here's another look at this yummy sauce!  I have to be honest I have had a bit of a sweet tooth lately - that usually isn't like me - but I have been trying to stay to fruit.  I think this did the trick!  Of course I wouldn't turn down a piece of Vegan Cheesecake if I were to come across one. teehee.  Actually there is a place in Buffalo that I LOVE that has Vegan Cheesecake and I haven't had it yet.  I really need to take a trip soon!  Anyhow...this sauce was pretty amazing!  It's sweet and rich and pretty thick, too!  I'm so glad I used my pint of Blueberries for this!  I still have some in the frig and hope to incorporate it into my foods this evening in some way, shape, or form!

I'm kind of going backwards here, but that's ok, right!? 

Check this bad-boy out!  It's Tomato Tahini Sauce!  Here's what I did for this little gem:
6 Cherry Tomatoes (or a bit bigger than Cherry)
1/3 C Tahini
1 T Rice Vinegar
1-2 T Balsamic
Pinch Cayenne Pepper

Next time I think I will just use the Balsamic instead of Rice or using BOTH like I did here.  I really prefer the Balsamic to give it that ZING and the little bit of KICK from the Cayenne is neat but my favorite part is that I used Tomato AND Tahini together in this!  It's almost like a Sour Cream consistency but you can taste all 4 main ingredients separately AND together!

And here is what I did for dinner on the stove top!  Yellow Potatoes, 3 kinds of Sweet Peppers including - Red, Orange, and Yellow, Onion, and Wildtree's Rancher Steak Rub to taste.  As I've mentioned before I like crispy foods on occasion so I accomplished that with this dish as well.

So last night I was 3 for 3 on my food attempts and I am looking forward to incorporating both sauces in other foods SOON.

What do you think of them!?