Domestic Goddess

Bonjour, my little chickadees.

I have totally been channeling my inner domestic goddess lately.

Though it may not look it, that tomato is still green.

The dog was bathed.

She didn't like it, but she complied. During the bath, she looked like a shivering drowned rat. Afterward, she looked so much whiter, and smelled more like soap and less like fish.

I cooked up lentils for my loverrly lunch. They were delicieux. So soft and mushy and flavorful. Aaaand they were quick to cook (25 minutes start to finish rather than soaked overnight then cooked for two hours).

The great thing about beans in general? They are a wonderful source of protein and carbs. Half a cup of dry lentils fit the bill for my protein and carb needs for lunch or dinner. So simple, satisfying, and yum!

Chard! Harvested from my garden, chopped, and sautéed in EVOO to perfection. I added some carrot chunks at the last minute.

There were lots of these:

Yes, snails looove my veggie garden. It is a tragedy (more on that later.) At first I cut out all the snail holes, but by the end I couldn't be bothered. This piece got cooked and went into my belly. And guess what? I haven't died yet :)

The final product. Chard, carrots, lentils, hummus. In case you were wondering, lentils and hummus are a match made in heaven.

Don't worry, there really were veggies under those lentils ;)

Déjeuner à l'air.

Speaking of harvesting... This is my veggie garden. She is my baby.

One of my darling tomato plants. Early girls. Of my four plants, this was the single one untouched by the deer who meandered into our garden and began munching away. It was very sad.

My dying spinach. Not looking too hot, eh? I blame it on the pot ;)

The snails say: nom nom.
Lexi says: be gone!

Eight-ball squash. I can't wait to harvest it!

Beautiful pink iris that just popped up behind my Early Girls.

Questions:

Have you been doing anything domestic lately?

Do you enjoy gardening/have a garden?

Do you typically cook up something for lunch (using pots and pans) or do you stick to quick and easy meals?

4th of July recap, eats, and Sushi lunch!

Good morning!

So yesterday I had a nice 4th of July dinner with my parents - they had ribs, potato, grilled corn and some salad, while I just had the grilled corn and salad. I was feeling so not hungry by the time dinner rolled around, so I opted not to have tofu but just add some edamame to my salad. I had had a rather voluminous lunch (1/2 cup cooked millet with spinach and broccoli, hummus, and some chocolate for dessert) and then a heavy snack (~1 cup of greek yogurt, pb, and jam.)

However, I didn't hear the end of how small my dinner looked, and that this was a 'diet' dinner. Yes, I understand it was the 4th of July and everyone was feasting, but I just wasn't feeling it. I listened to my hunger.

Nevertheless, I made a special "4th of July" themed dessert that was delish. I mad Katie's fudge dadies and topped them with her coconut banana butter and some blueberries and grapes to try to tie all the colors in with Independence Day :)

Unfortunately I didn't get a picture, but they were yummy. My parents loved them. In other words, success! The brownies were ooey gooey (I tossed some extra chocolate chips in there) and the butter complemented them perfectly.

I've been on such a grape kick lately. It used to be I greatly disliked them - maybe it's because I associate them with feasting Romans...

But lately I've been eating them cold from the fridge, and they're divine! I've tried them frozen, but didn't like them much... Too icy and chewy in my opinion. But refrigerated they turn sweet, just crisp and crunchy enough... perfect.


What else have I been eating lately?

For breaky, I had something I've never had before - chocolate banana oats!

 Naked. 1/2 cup oats, 1 verrrry ripe banana, 

1.25 cups water, and about 1 Tbsp. sweet Ghirardelli cocoa powder.

Dressed! With drippy drippy almond butter.

Up-front-and-personal with the wonderfulness. 

My attempt at 'artful' decoration.

After this I got ready and headed over to my doctor's appointment. She said I've gained back a little, and am now at the minimum of where I should be. She wants me to gain a little more so I'll be in a safe space when I go back to college. Apparently she expects that with the extra walking at campus, the stress of work, etc. that I will lose weight, so she wants to create a buffer zone. 

I'm not sure how I feel about that. Most of the time I feel large and bloated, and it annoys me that I don't have to be that weight all the time. It also annoys me that she expects me to lose weight. I mean, what if I don't lose weight? What if I gain weight? Last Fall, when started my Freshman semester, is when I started gaining weight, despite all the walking around.

It's just kind of nerve-racking, I suppose.

Afterward my madre and I ran some errands (I picked up some silver paint for the bureaus in my room that I'm repainting) and by the end of the morning I was feeling kind of faint and hungry, so we stopped and got bubble tea! :) It was yummeh. My mom got almond flavor, and I got soy hazelnut. We shopped some more, then had lunch at a sushi restaurant.

A lot of people think it's hard to be vegan or vegetarian at sushi restaurants, surrounded by raw fish, but it's actually quite simple! Here are the things I tend to order when I'm getting my Japanese food on:

1. Avocado roll - love this. So yummy, rich, yet simple.
2. Edamame - steamed and salted, this is a great, tasty source of non-fish protein
3. Miso soup - not very nutritious, but still vegan and yummy
4. Tofu cheesecake. No words. So good.

 We meandered down the street a while, and came across a cute boutique where everything was 50% off! I got two cute tops that I <3 before my mom treated me to a pedicure (and eyebrow wax - but we'll keep that shush shush ;] )

When I got home, it was snack time!

 About 1 cup of almond milk, three cups of blueberries, and 3 ice cubes.

It looks good, but it tasted kind of meh. I think I like my smoothies a bit thicker. 

And no, I did not eat the chard sticks ;)

 On that note, I hope you had a great Tuesday!