A Super Bowl

Baker is probably more excited than anyone what football is now over. He puts up with grown men 'hootin' n' hollering' at the TV on Sunday and Monday for a good 5 months. The loud obnoxious clapping and cheering usually drives him to hide behind me. Especially when our team scores. It's boarder line pathetic. But we love him!

I like the cultural aspect of football. But besides that, I really have no interest in it. I love any excuse to get friends together to snack and chat. Who wouldn't?

For the game, I made a true Super Bowl of dip. I should have used a bigger pan to present it in, but I knew we'd be transporting it to a friends' house. I went with a deeper dish which I knew had a lid. But really, since it is so delicious, people won't care what you serve it in!

Super Bowl Dip

1 can refried beans

1/2 red onion - finely diced

1 tub toufutti cream cheese- the yellow tub

garlic, chili and cayenne

2 avocados

a dash of lime juice

black beans

1 good sized tomato

1 jalapeno pepper sliced thin

pepper to taste

I guarantee it's fast to toss together. Spread a layer of refried beans at the bottom of the pan. Chop and place the onion on top of the beans. In a microwaveable bowl, transfer the tofutti and warm until it is more pliable. Then, mix in as much garlic powder, chili powder and cayenne as you wish to the cream cheese. Place the cream cheese on top of the onions. Mash the avocados with some lime and spread over the cream cheese. Toss the remaining ingrdients over the avocados. Dust a lil' pepper and dried cilantro before serving.

This is fine served cold, or heated up. Do what you like! Serve with some beautiful tortilla chips and a cool beverage. Enjoy!

Stickin' it to the Man.

Oh, boy. Oh, boy. I've been fooled.

Natural Ovens claims to be a natural whole grain bakery. They are stationed out of Manitowoc in Wisconsin. I used to loveee their products and please let me emphasize, loved their products.

Last night, I was making up some black bean burgers. Earlier in the day I attempted to make some whole wheat buns. They kind of flopped and were more dense like a biscuit than a bun. I'm planning on making some chili to accompany them so we can still use 'em up. Anyway-- I needed some buns! I sent Baker's Daddy to the store to get some. He acted on behalf of me, saw Natural Ovens, knowing they are a respected local company and purchased some whole wheat buns. When he returned home, I checked over the ingredients and was appalled to find high fructose corn syrup in a product that claims to be "100% WHOLE WHEAT"! What the fuck, I do apologize for my language, but really?! I am just astounded. I still am!

I wrote them a letter and posted a note on their Facebook page which probably has since been deleted. But really? Most people don't know what they're buying. Most people don't care to even look. But with health so closely tied to what we put in our bodies, companies should never claim something they are not to sell a product.

This has only made me want to make more of my own food and rely less on companies that use false advertising to sell their crap.

Natural Ovens, we are so over.

He's Famous!

Our local newspaper asked readers to submit pictures of their pets. Of course, I jumped on it right away! Baker is practically famous! Not really, but I'm sure proud of him! Check him out here! He's number 53. :) Peace.

Behold da Powa'!

Beans! These lil' legumes have more power than you know! Well, some of you might know and I'm not talking about their reputation of making people toot excessively. Let me help you understand why these babies are so great.

They are cheap! Lately, I've been buying a majority of my beans in bulk, soaking and cooking them. Doing this takes a little more time and planning, but it's so worth it. Some organic beans cost $1.45 - 2.00! Buy a big ol' bag of dried beans and you'll save more than you know!

Lentils, kidneys, fava beans, etc. all are loaded with protein, fiber, calcium and plenty of vitamins and minerals. They're great to satisfy a hungry belly for hours, I guarantee these lil' buggers stay with you longer than a bowl of oatmeal. They're delicious and quite nutritious!

Beans are so versatile, too. Use them in a salad, soup, mash them together to make a burger or use them just as a side. Whatever, try something new- Make spaghetti and bean balls!

I had leftovers from making enchiladas earlier this week and thought to put them all together in a black bean soup. I wouldn't necessarily categorize this a 'garbage soup', which has anything and everything from your refrigerator in it, but pretty it's close. You could make this with plenty of variations.

Leftover Black Bean soup

1 1/2 cup black beans

1 onion- chopped

1 tablespoon oil

1 can chopped or diced tomatoes

1 cup corn

1 jalapeno- chopped with it's seeds

Crushed red pepper to taste

1 1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

salt n' pepper

a little juice from a lime

Saute the onion with the oil. I added a bit of garlic powder in this phase, too. When the onions are translucent, toss in the beans, tomatoes, pepper and all the spices. Simmer for a bit and before serving add the cilantro.

Garnish with fresh cilantro, avocado and a lime wedge. I was just so happy that I made another whole meal from the leftovers of another- and it was far from being sloppy seconds!

HiberNol!

Winter is remarkable. It can be cold, beautiful and a bit dangerous. More than dangerous, especially for my waist line. It's easy to follow suit and stay inside, drink cocoa with peppermint schnapps and live a pretty sedentary life. I received a North Face coat filled with PrimaLoft and I'm no longer afraid of staying outside-- I'm so warm! I sweat when I go snowshoeing! Warm clothes make all the difference in the world. It's gotten better, but there are days when I wish I could take a dose of HiberNol with Chris Farley and call it quits 'till spring. If you get the winter blues, laugh a lil' and know you're not alone!

Now, to the food! Casseroles, stuffed pastas and traditional comfort foods are great to help the winter blahs. They're warm, full of nostalgia and calories. Growing up, I loved stuffed shells and any kind of pasta. When I was 9 and learned that some runners "carbo-load" before a race, I remember asking my mom if I could run in one. Oh, I was a silly, silly kid.

Since I am concerned with the nutritional value in pretty much everything I eat, I made sure to make this "oldie" a new and healthy favorite. We had some leftover frozen squash in the freezer from the fall that I wanted to make some kind of ravioli with. Stuffed shells are kind of like ravioli, but the shells seemed easier at the time. Manicotti could easily be used in place of the shells.

Acorn Squash Ricotta

1 lb firm tofu- pressed

1 1/2 acorn squash - that's just what we had, You could get away with just one or use two.

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1/2 of a lemon- squeezed

1 teaspoon basil

1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

dash of salt and pepper

a few dashes of nutmeg

In a large bowl, mash the squash together. Crumble to tofu into the bowl with the squash. Squeeze lemon over 'ricotta' mixture and add in the dry spices. While you are mixing the Acorn mixture, boil the water and cook the shells. When the shells are to that al dente point, strain and shock them with some cold water to prevent them from cooking more.

Then, stuff the shells! Place them into a pan that has a bit of marinara on the bottom of it to reduce any sticking. Cover with marinara and a little nutritional yeast and put them into a pre-heated oven at 370 for about 45-60 minutes.

I guarantee, people will think this is ricotta.