Banana Split… In A Glass… For Breakfast

It wasn't until taking the last few sips of my breakfast smoothie the other day that I realized just how much it reminded me of a banana split. Up until that point I just kept thinking, "This tastes gooooood! Maybe too good for something that's supposed to be breakfast?… Nah!"

Just like a real banana split it's got dairy, bananas, strawberries, vanilla, and chocolate (yum!). The only things missing are the whipped cream, sprinkles, and a cherry on top. Oh yeah... and the "I-can't-believe-I-ate-all-that" guilt. There's not a lick of that.

Unlike a bona fide banana split, this is packed with pro-biotics, leafy greens, and wheat germ. But you'd sure never know it from the taste....

Savoring The Simple Gifts Of Summer

I didn't plan on taking a photo of my dinner last night. I didn't plan on blogging about it today. I didn't plan the meal at all. Sure, I knew we'd be having leftover bratwurst with mustard, but beyond that, it all just fell together, and when I sat down and started to dig into it... my senses took everything in and I had to grab the camera.

What you don't see in the photo is the color of the summer evening sky. You can't feel the perfectly soft warmth paired with the gentlest of breezes in such contrast with the scorching heat earlier in the day. You might get a hint of the relaxed ease of the meal, but what about the thrift? What about the sense of accomplishment, stewardship, gratitude, and relief? And, of course, there's the deliciousness to consider as well. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but how many can you really see? To anyone else, it's just a plate of food, but to me it represents so much more...

Putting The Corn in Corningware

Have you seen the "Easiest Way To Cook Corn"? It's from Cait Hates Cake and is all over Pinterest (which is where it caught my eye). I wasn't even looking for a new method for cooking corn... we always just grill them on the Weber alongside the rest of the meal. They're pretty darned awesome that way, but a bit of work to remove the silk while leaving the husks on and then re-wrapping. And that was precisely what intrigued me about this oven method... the simplicity. The corncobs cook whole and un-shucked, and  separate easily from both husk and silk when they're done... oh yeah, and they're cooked to perfection.

How Smoothies Are Like Marinades (and how I am like Rocky Balboa)

tend to not use recipes when I make things like smoothies or marinades. I might use a recipe as a guide, but more often than not, I just don't bother. Instead, I use a formula... really it's almost more of a rhyme or mnemonic. Breaking the finished product down into it's basic elements makes for a super-flexible and creative approach. As a result, my smoothies and marinades all tend to be of the "everything-but-the-kitchen sink" variety: always tasty, occasionally spectacular. If I hit on a particular combination that knocks it out of the park... I write it down in a messy notebook (or on this blog) for the next time. Here's my approach to smoothie making...

Eating Like A Bird

Everyone used to tell me when I was a young'un that I "ate like a bird". I always thought they were referring to how little I ate. Now that we have a bird-feeder in the front yard and can see just how much birds actually consume… I'm wondering what everyone was thinking! Watching the way they plunder our bird feeder, I can only come to the conclusion that birds eat like pigs. Little itty bitty piggies... with feathers.

The "eating like a bird" reference perhaps then had to do with how I ate, not how much. As a child, I used to pick (peck?) at my food. Maybe that's where the similarity with bird-like table manners comes into play. I also ate really slowly. Birds are not exactly known for eating slowly though, come to think of it. Constantly, sometimes messily, noisily and amusingly... sure, but never slowly. So perhaps I never actually "ate like a bird" at all.

Of course, there's another way to eat like a bird, and that's to eat what birds eat. The other day I made some Millet Muffins, tossing a big handful of blueberries in the batter at the last minute. The first time I'd made these, my Hubby said, "Millet? Isn't that bird seed?". Well, it is... and it isn't. You'll want to buy your own millet from the baking/grains aisle (and not from the pet store), but it is essentially the same grain. When added to baked goods, millet brings a lovely bit of texture, pop, and crunch to the finished treat.