Creative ideas, recipes, ways of living and bath and body products that are pure bliss
Yeah, I know, I have been MIA again, but I thought you might like to hop over to DIY Life and read my latest post about creating blends with essential oils just for valentine’s Day. There are recipes for scenting the room and for scenting body oil.
And check back every week, as I’ll be writing the column “The Scentual Life” every Tuesday. Enjoy!
This is a tough one for me to share because I have honestly never measured, but we should all make things to our own tastes, anyway, right? I will approximate what I do and you can add, subtract, alter in any way you wish. If you have an innovative change, please comment; I’d love to hear about it!
2 TB cider vinegar (the raw, unfiltered, organic stuff)
1 TB balsamic vinegar
2.5 TB extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. maple syrup (grade B, full of flavor and nutrition)
1 tsp. stoneground or dijon mustard (I love the Westbrae Farms organic ones)
1/4 tsp. onion powder
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Whisk and serve!
I love this dressing on a mixed greens salad (arugala!) with slivered almonds, dried cranberries and a little crumbled gorgonzola.
Enjoy!
I have been neglecting sharing homemade body care recipes with you, I suppose since I am in eating mode this winter and have just been posting food recipes! Here’s a super-easy one that your skin and senses will adore . . .
After Bath Yum
- 1/4 c. virgin coconut oil (get this at a health food store, natural foods section of your supermarket or online)
- 10 drops lavender essential oil
- 3 drops rose geranium essential oil
- 2 drops patchouli essential oil
- 3 drops sweet orange essential oil
You can melt the VCO a bit if you find it easier to mix in the essential oils; otherwise, just blend and use! A little goes a long way, and slathering it on while your skin is still wet after a bath or shower is so perfect for retaining hydration.
I created this dish a while ago, but I made it again last night and realized that I had to post it here for you all to enjoy. It is a favorite in our house, even Owen loves it!
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced
1 large zucchini, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, julienned
1 lb. crabmeat
fresh parsley
1 lb. penne (I use brown rice pasta)
1/3 c. lemon juice (maybe a little more?)
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil (maybe a little more?)
1 tsp. Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute (or Mrs. Dash or any no-salt seasoning blend) or to taste
Saute first 4 ingredients in a deep skillet. Leave a good long time for this (maybe 1/2 hr?), as doing it slowly over low heat (med-low) until browned will slightly caramelize the veggies.
Meanwhile, cook pasta and prepare dressing.
When veggies are done, add crabmeat and parsley and heat through. Remove from heat and add dressing. Toss and serve.
Quinoa is one of my favorite grains — it is wheat free, chock full of protein and has a unique flavor all its own. It is so versatile it can be prepared as a breakfast porridge or made into a yummy side dish, like I did last night.
All hail to Trader Joe’s for their bountiful selection of organic frozen produce. I keep a variety in my freezer at all times, and it sure came in handy last night!
1.5 c. dry quinoa
1 bag frozen organic spinach
1 bag frozen organic peas
1 large onion, chopped
1 large handful of fresh basil, sage, or parsley or a combination of them all, chopped
dressing
- 1/3 c. lemon juice
- 1/4 c. olive oil
Whisk together.
Prepare quinoa by cooking in 3 c. water; boil, cover and simmer until water is soaked up.
Meanwhile, saute onion in a little olive oil, and when translucent, add peas and spinach. When everything is heated through, add cooked quinoa, herbs and dressing. Serve hot, room temperature or chill before serving.
How good would this be with any number of additions — green beans, artichoke hearts, zucchini . . .
If you get sick of having fish the same way all the time, try this. It is easy and we have tested it on wild salmon and tilapia — great on both!
- equal parts lemon juice and flax seed oil
- capers to taste
Whisk lemon juice and flax oil until thick and yellow. Add capers. Pour over fish and serve.
The tilapia is good dipped in spelt flour and pan-fried. The salmon we like to broil.
Variations:
- Add mustard for a little more flavor.
- Add cider vinegar for extra zing.
- Add the fresh, chopped herb of your choosing.
I have been experimenting this week with crusts for salmon and chicken, and we are loving the experiments! Perfectly healthy, tasty and something different — oh, and super-easy, which fits our lifestyle right now.
Process:
Put all ingredients in food processor. Put crust on top of meat or fish and bake or broil to taste. Easy!
Ginger Crust for Salmon
- 2 TB fresh ginger
- 1/3 c. almonds
- 1 tsp. tamari sauce
- 1 tsp. honey
Sprinkle with sliced scallions before serving.
Oven Baked Chicken Crust
- 1/3 c. almonds
- pinch ground coriander
- 1 tsp. dries parsley flakes
- 1/4 tsp. rubbed sage
- ground black pepper and sea salt to taste
- pinch basil
- 1 tsp. honey
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
Dipping sauce for chicken:
In small individual custard cups, put 2 tsp. honey, 1/4 tsp. dijon mustard, 1/4 tsp. olive oil and 1/2 tsp. lemon juice.
Pasta with Asparagus
By mistake, I cooked the broccoli last night that was supposed to go in our roasted veggie pasta tonight –oops! But serendipity worked in our favor tonight, b/c this yummy recipe was created.
1 lb. cooked penne (I use brown rice pasta)
2 sun dried tomato chicken sausages, chopped and sauteed
4 slices prosciutto
1 bunch asparagus, chopped into bite-sized pieces
2 onions
sun dried tomatoes (about 1/2 of a bag of dried ones) reconstituted in water (reserve water) and chopped
kalamata olives to taste
fresh rosemary to taste, chopped (we used about 2 TB)
for sauce:
sun dried tomato water
1 c. white wine
1 TB balsamic vinegar
Roast asparagus and onions with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and extra virgin olive oil in the oven for about 1/2 hour at 375 (we do 350 convection). Toss with all other ingredients and extra virgin olive oil.
Use wine to deglaze pan that the sausages were cooked in. Add sun dried tomato water and balsamic vinegar and boil down until there is about a cup and a half of liquid left. Add this to pasta mixture, toss well and serve with goat cheese crumbles. Delicious!
This dish even got kudos from gourmet Dad! I love creating yummy things!
What is quinoa, you ask? It is a grain that is a great source of protein and is gluten-free. It is available at Whole Foods, Trader Joes and more than likely your local health food store.
Ingredients:
~ 1 c. uncooked quinoa
~ 1 yellow onion, chopped
~ 1 red onion, chopped
~ 4 large cloves garlic, chopped into quarters
~ about 10-16 sun dried tomato halves (I used dried ones reconstituted in water)
~ handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
~ handful fresh parsley leaves, chopped
~ 1-2 TB aged balsamic vinegar
~ 1-2 TB extra virgin olive oil
Cook quinoa in 2-3 c. water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa is fluffy and the rings have started to fall off.
Roast onion and garlic on cookie sheet in 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until brown. Chop into tiny pieces (I used a Cuisenart Mini-prep).
Toss all ingredients together. Serve warm or chilled. Enjoy!
I’ve been enjoying this simple salad dressing on my lunchtime salads. It is so easy to whip up your own salad dressing with no additives or bad vinegars and oils. And this is a very easy dressing to vary, too. Oh, and some healthy facts — cider vinegar is the only one that will help your body become more alkaline, it is a very healthy vinegar and some people even drink it daily for their digestion. I use the EV olive b/c I like the taste and it is a good oil, flax would be good too and impart a slightly nutty flavor.
~ equal parts cider vinegar and extra virgin olive oil
~ dijon mustard to taste
Whisk and serve!
Some variations you can do are:
~ add onion powder and ground cayenne to give it a kick and make it liver-cleansing.
~ add fresh chopped herbs like basil, thyme or sage.
~ chopped fresh cilantro will help detoxify the body of heavy metals.
~ chives, shallots, scallions give a subtle onion taste.
~ pureed raspberries makes a yummy, fruity dressing.
I whipped this up yesterday and ate it with baby carrots and cucumbers. If you like fresh basil, try this!
Ingredients
~ 1 15-oz. can white beans (I used Great Northern)
~ 1 clove garlic, minced and slightly cooked in a bit of extra virgin olive oil
~ handful fresh basil leaves
~ 1-2 TB balsamic vinegar
~ 1-2 TB extra virgin olive oil
~ freshly ground black pepper to taste
Put all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth. Adjust balsamic vinegar for taste and olive oil for texture. You may substitute about 1/4 tsp. granulated garlic for the fresh.