What I've Been Eating

I am currently in a "flying by the seat of my pants" season, i.e. the kids have been sick and have also had heavy homework, test and project loads, so I haven't had the time or the mindset for much creativity in the kitchen. Nevertheless, a girl's gotta eat, and I've been able to eat pretty well in the midst of the recent chaos. There's not much that's original here, and certainly no recipes, but for inspiration's sake, here is what I've been eating lately.

For lunch yesterday I made a cold "pizza" from leftovers and odds and ends. I famously tend to overstuff all manner of tacos and wraps, so I decided to go "open-face" with this one. On a large whole wheat flatbread (the soft, pillowy kind) I spread some spinach/artichoke hummus, then topped it with arugula and leftover beans and wild rice. My jar of dijon mustard was all but empty, so I put about a tablespoon of olive oil, a tablespoon of veganaisse and a dash of balsamic vinegar into the jar and shook it up. I drizzled this dressing over the top of the "pizza" for some extra flavor. I used a pizza wheel to cut this into wedges, and it was totally satisfying and much neater than my overstuffed sandwiches tend to be. If you are not such an over-stuffer, you might like a combo like this in a sheet of nori or on a tortilla.

For dinner last night I fixed Sicilian Collard Greens from Alicia Silverstone's "The Kind Diet". This is such a delicious, tried and true recipe for me. It's a real treat and I highly recommend it! I had previously boiled pasta on this burner, so when I started the collards recipe last night the burner was still a little too hot, burning the garlic and collards ever so slightly. It didn't matter to me. I still adored this crispier version and finished the leftovers this morning for breakfast!

Also for dinner last night I made a variation of Morgan's Herbed Mashed Potatoes from her amazing blog, "Little House of Veggies" (http://littlehouseofveggies.blogspot.com). If you haven't tried Morgan's wonderful recipe, I encourage all of you to check it out immediately! Morgan's potatoes are my daughter's favorite. She loves them much more than any non-vegan potatoes. What I did here is really only based upon Morgan's recipe, since I was out of most of the ingredients. I didn't have any fresh italian parsley, so I used dried dill, and I used veggie broth instead of plant milk since the plant milk I had open was almond milk, which my son is allergic to, and I was hoping he could try the potatoes. These potatoes turned out to be delicious, but I prefer the fresh herbs.

When there is no room in our lives for original brainwork, it's wonderful to have some trusted recipes in our arsenal. I do, however, have some new ideas rumbling around in my mind, so be on the lookout for them in future posts!