Let's Make a Meal!

So, here is the thing. I love food, and I cook often, but I am not really "a cook".

I have some friends that are just amazing to watch in the kitchen. Calm, graceful, effortless.

I am more like a hurricane.

Food flies everywhere. Heaps of dishes get used. And on more than one occasion... things break.

(Lucky for me, B and I have a rule that when one person cooks, the other has to clean up! )

Lately I have been attempting to follow recipes, but more often than not I am more preparing food rather than cooking it. When I say prepare I don't mean that I take out a frozen meal from the freezer and zap it up in a microwave... But more that I just take basic healthy ingredients and make a delicious simple meal out of them. I guess what I mean is that it's not very involved...

That being said, I've gotten pretty good at this style of cooking and I've been making some yummy things lately.

I often take pictures of what I make. Why?

a. Food is so beautiful!

b. I always imagine posting the pics on the 'ol blog.

And yet, I actually have rarely posted these pictures. I'm not sure why... I suppose there is something very personal about food and it makes me feel a little vulnerable!

But lately I've been getting a lot of questions about what and how I eat, and I think we all need some inspiration from time to time. The nice thing is that all of this food is really easy to make. I know it is, because I made it, and as I said above, I'm not exactly the next Wolfgang Puck.

So, here it goes...

Sprouted grain toast with mashed sardines and avocado

Heirloom tomato with buffalo mozzerella & basil, olive oil, S & P

Mixed berry crumble

Sprouts for the salad in the next photo

B has named this the "vital salad" because you feel so alive after eating it!

Chopped cabbage, mixed sprouts, toasted peanuts

Tofu, summer squash, and brown rice with pesto over spicy greens

Garden picnic (mozz & tom salad, sliced purple carrots, shredded salad (made by shastine) of zuchini, cucumber & basil, plus some foccacia I picked up at the farmers market

Messy scramble with tomato, shredded collard greens & pecoino

Steamed veggies over greens with side of toast with goat cheese

Tamari marinated tofu over greens with corn on cob

Salad I made for Brian's birthday: lettuce, potato, corn, feta, chopped herbs & scapes

Ok... I think you get the idea.
I eat a lot of salad, I know. I do eat meat,, fish, etc. Though I guess I cook mostly vegetarian.


I hope some of these pics inspire you to believe that you don't have to be a cook to make a great meal.

What have you been eating lately?
If you want to know more about any of the meals/dishes pictured above, drop me a line in the comments section and I'll post those recipes in a few days.