Well, it’s not exactly a snow day here in Houston. More of an inclement weather day. The temperature dipped below freezing and we had some rain. And icy roads and overpasses are something we cannot deal with here. So, no school and extra time on our hands.
When I said to my youngest teenage son Eli, “Hey, do you want to make something in the kitchen today?” I was so pleased when, without hesitation, he said: “Yeah, let’s make honest pretzels!”
I was asked to write a bio recently and so I described myself as: a yoga instructor, vegan food blogger, stand up paddleboard (SUP) enthusiast and dedicated granola eater. There you have it…granola is actually a part of my identity. I love it so much. I love making it. I love eating it. And I love sharing it with other people.
Being crunchy-nutty is something I really do embrace. I like to think of myself as a kind, loving, earthy, hippie momma. I like real food made by hand. I say namaste and mean it. I am an open-minded, liberal-leaning, tree-hugging granola eater and this is my latest granola concoction.
If I had to make a prediction for a 2014 food trend, I’d pick artisan nut butters. Yep, I’m talking $12/jar fancy shmancy nut butters. They might be a blend of different nuts or have special spices and flavors added. Of course, chocolate-hazelnut has been done and people love it. What about vanilla cashew butter or ginger brazil nut butter or cardamom almond hemp seed butter?
So I thought I’d whip up my own batch of trendy nut butter using good ole Texas pecans and chai spices. Making nut butter is so easy. Um, you put the nuts in a food processor and let it whirl around until it turns into nut butter. That’s pretty much it. I liked using pecans because I can get them locally since I live in Houston. It’s our state tree and everything. Pecan trees, a species of hickory trees, are actually native to the U.S. and our country produces more than 80 – 90% of the world’s supply. So that’s neat, too.
When life gives you lemons…I say make lemon tarts. That is, raw, vegan, gluten-free, amazingly delicious, lemon tarts. I found this recipe on a blog, just randomly search for lemony ideas. It’s a knock off of the Hail Mary Meyer Lemon Miracle Tart. I love this brand when I’m in the mood for a little treat.
Last week, it got a little cold here in Houston, we had a hard freeze and everything. So, I decided that I better harvest the last remaining lemons from the Meyer lemon tree in my backyard. I love this tree. It produces the most wonderful, juicy lemons. I treasure every single one.
You know how sometimes you make a salad and you just nail it. The taste is just right. The texture is perfect. The vegetables and dressing co-mingle like they were meant to be together. This is the salad you have been looking for your whole life. The love of your life salad, if you will.
Well, I made that salad tonight. I’m a huge fan of kale salads, but I’ve made many that have fallen flat. The kale tastes too bitter or something just isn’t quite right. But tonight, ah tonight, the kale salad sang and it was a beautiful thing.
foodie yoga girl 