November's meal plan

"Creamiest Vegan Broccoli Soup"

November was the first time in our marriage that I actually had an organized meal plan and man, did it make life easier! Here are the meals I liked enough to keep for the future, followed by what I did to organize all the meals and lists:

http://www.theppk.com/2013/10/meat-beany-chili-corn-muffins-video/
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2006/10/stormy-black-bean-soup.html
http://balancedplatter.com/potato-pepper-and-pinto-hash-gluten-free-vegan/#more-4173
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2009/02/quick-and-easy-potato-soup.html
http://ohsheglows.com/2011/04/19/taco-chili-with-nacho-cheeze-sauce/
http://damndelicious.net/2013/10/16/quinoa-chili/
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/01/thick-and-hearty-pinto-bean-chili.html <Andy said, "This chili could win awards."
http://www.theppk.com/2013/09/blt-mac-cheeze/ 
http://www.meatlessmonday.com/recipes/spiced-lentil-tacos/ <...with this cashew cheese topping http://milkandcerealblog.wordpress.com/2012/09/27/cashew-cheese-kale-enchiladas/ (I added a little bit of homemade red sauce as well.)
http://www.iheartnaptime.net/taco-soup-recipe/
http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-best-oatmeal-cookies-youll-ever.html <these are seriously the best! be sure to add in chocolate chips! p.s. I used regular brown sugar and regular cinnamon.
http://www.food.com/recipe/5-minute-vegan-pancakes-132263# <this is one of the recipes I've been using to perfect vegan pancakes. Using 1/4-1/2 cup oatmeal flour with white or whole wheat flour for the rest makes it amazing. I'm still on the hunt, though...not quite settled on this yet.

http://bakerbettie.com/chocolate-chip-peanut-butter-skillet-cookie-wheat-free-vegan/ <using a mixture of at least 1 c. white or whole wheat flour makes this much better and more cookie like. be sure to eat with ice cream!

http://awakenedprincess.com/creamiest-vegan-broccoli-soup-ever/ <This is the potato soup I made last night that I talked about on Facebook. It is my new favorite soup. I doubled it last night I love it so much. It is super easy to make, too, just takes some time to chop up all the veggies. p.s. I like to add nutritional yeast to make it even "cheesier" and healthier!

Ziplist has made my life so much easier. I create a new list each month. There is a recipe tab where you can copy and paste a recipe's URL address and you can then add in all those ingredients into your grocery list. If you have homemade recipes or recipes from a cookbook you can click "create a recipe" for that as well. When a recipe becomes your favorite, keep it in your recipe box and add it to future grocery lists! The only frustrations I have is if you have a lot of recipes that call for onions or garlic (like most do) then you will end up with lots of line items for that, instead of just one all added up together (unless there is a secret way to simplify this I haven't discovered). However, you can edit your list and add it all up and simplify it yourself within the list. Another thing is occasionally something ends up in the wrong category (it is arranged by "produce," "drinks," "frozen," etc.).

Once I know I have all the recipes I want to use for the month, (I email myself recipes all through the month with stuff I want to try so it easily all stays together until I enter it in ziplist) I grab a calendar of sorts and start putting down meals I want to make on different days. I have never done this before, (I always wanted to eat what I was in the mood for) but it is now the one thing I would recommend doing if you really want to be organized. Now I love it! I always know what day I will cook, what it will be, and it saves money on produce! The days I have designated to cook are M/T/F/weekend, other than that there is usually enough leftovers for our small family for now. Once I have my meals mapped out, I disregard the "produce" category in my ziplist shopping list and only write down the produce for the meals I am making for the week. So, I do one big grocery trip at the beginning of the month, and I usually go to the grocery store on the weekends to pick up produce for the coming week. Why did it take me 3 1/2 years to finally figure this out?!

notes:

*I buy cashew pieces (pieces are SO much cheaper and work just as well for me) and nutritional yeast (which can both be expensive, but it evens out for me because I don't buy any dairy) in bulk which appears to be much more affordable if you have that option, as most things in bulk are. I store my nutritional yeast (great way to get your B-12!) in a glass jar on the counter and my cashew pieces in a glass jar in the fridge. I always soak my cashew pieces before using them to aid in digestion.

*I now highly recommend getting a coffee grinder for things like flax seeds (buy whole flax seeds and store in the fridge as flax meal does not stay good long!). It made the oatmeal cookie recipe such a breeze.

*I did not receive anything from Ziplist. I found the website searching for meal planning help and just like to spread the word about things that are helpful for me so it might help someone else that may be struggling with meal planning like I was.

lately : around here

This week was perfect. 

Finishing crafts that I started last year.

Buying all the cinnamon whisks at Trader Joe's.

Sending happy mail.

Throwing knitting needles across the room because it's really, really hard.

Looking at pretty things I want to make so I don't give up.

Decorating with my love.

Going on lots of walks.

Spending time with friends.

Giving thanks.

Wishing Andy could make fried rice every single night.

Eating all the chocolate.

Happy 1st day of December. I hope your month is merry and bright.

how to feel amazing

This is not a sponsored post and I am not a professional health person of any kind. I do not even know how to get a sponsored post and will probably never be famous enough for one anyway. But when I find something I love, I like to tell people because I like it when people tell me about what they love.

Last Thursday Andy woke up sick. He had a headache, was achy, and his temperature was 99.5 (which may or may not mean anything, apparently temperature can vary from person to person). Someone he works with had just gotten over the flu so I was worried he could  have caught something. He got worse as the day went on and drank lots of water and slept.

On my way home I went to Rainbow Blossom and asked one of the workers if they recommend any kind of vitamin C/cold/flu medicine. The lady told me I had to get this. I was afraid she was just trying to sell me the most expensive thing for some reason, but it sounded pretty amazing and she said all the workers love it and use it.

I came home and loosely used this recipe to make vegetable broth (I can't believe how easy it is to make homemade broth!) and about 40 minutes in to cooking it I cooked 1 cup of quinoa separately and added it to his bowl of broth when it was finished.

I gave Andy 2 tablespoons of the ACF and took some for myself. We just drink it straight instead of in juice. It is no worse tasting than something like NyQuil--it is just really strong. Once it's in you I can't describe how amazing and clean you feel. Then I had him eat his bowl of broth with quinoa in it (I added spices like black pepper, white pepper, and red pepper. We really like our peppers.) and told him not to eat anything else and to go back to sleep while I went to my class. The next morning he stayed home to be safe and already felt much better than the day before. For breakfast he took a shot of ACF and drank a green smoothie, lunch was only broth again with ACF, and dinner was a baked potato and more ACF. By Saturday he felt as good as new (though still has a small cough and drainage at night) and I haven't gotten any symptoms. This is now our must have for cold and flu season!

Details:
This has 1,000 mg of Vitamin C, 15 mg of Zinc, 600 mg of Echinacea Purpurea extract, 750 mg of Elderberry extract, and a host of other great herbs.

crowder concert

I clapped, I danced, I sang my favorite hymns with hundreds of other people. David Crowder will probably be the worship leader in eternity. Also, K-LOVE came by while we were in line and asked if anyone wanted to play a game. I was the only one that raised my hand (does no one like to have fun anymore?) and won a Christmas CD! My favorite moment of the concert was when Crowder was tuning his guitar and did something wrong and then said, "Sorry, I've never really played the guitar before." :) 

It was so nice to go to a concert with Andy. We really haven't been to one since we moved here. We used to go to concerts all the time together, but those were Classical and usually the symphony when I could go for free. Those were the days.

unknown fact: Our first concert we went to together was a Deas Vail concert my first semester of college. Except, we did not know each other and I do not remember seeing him, though I probably did because that was the most awkward concert I've ever been to...no one was there and people sat on the floor. But it was Deas Vail, so it was still amazing.

lately {november}

meal planning for Christmas

perfecting pancakes on Saturdays

learning to knit

planning a perfect Christmas present

always cooking in a cast iron skillet that was Andy's great-grandmother's

wanting big, comfy socks

listening to Dr. Bruce Ware teach theology

savoring dark chocolate often

creating traditions

stepping on lots of colored leaves during bright November walks

realizing I need to start thinking about the new year

i made magic.

I don't think I've had a dessert this good for ages. This apple crisp is seriously magic. Why would anyone ever make pie when they can have apple crisp? This is the food of heaven.

Notes: I did not measure my apples. I just filled up a 9x13 baking dish with the amount of apples I wanted. I really wish I wrote down exactly what I did, but I know I left out the white sugar, probably only used 1/2 cup of brown sugar, and added probably a 1/2 cup of maple syrup. I think next time I will figure out how to only have maple syrup sweeten it. Also, I used regular oats and added chopped pecans to the topping. I think the maple syrup and pecans are what made it spectacular. Served with Trader Joe's soy ice cream. Pure bliss.

today.

Today was one of those perfect days you want to always remember. My Chinese craving was fulfilled and topped with Annie May's. We went for a drive and listened to Harry Potter, losing track of all the cares in the city. After it warmed up we finally found a park that's not over crowded and we enjoyed a bike ride. Once home dishes needed washing and papers needed writing, but for a few magical hours all toil was forgotten.