I was always a huge fan of salads.  One of the things my roommate in my college apartment said she missed when I moved out was the little containers of salad ingredients waiting the the fridge, ready to go.  (After we would go food shopping, I used to clean and slice up all the veggies so that we could make a salad quickly, any time we wanted).  As time has passed, though, the salads have evolved.

It started when I added grains in.  Leftover couscous?  Throw it in.  Extra quinoa?  Yes, please!  Then, when I started dating John, I would add in the leftover hummus or baba ganoush that was in the fridge.  Over time, it became more about the add-ins than the actual salad part.  When there were no leafy greens (the horror!), I would still make it, but I was at a loss as to what to call it.

Does a salad with no leafy greens qualify as a salad?  It's one of life's big questions, I know.

So, I called it a grain salad.  Except, sometimes there were no grains.  A veggie salad, then?  I guess, but that didn't really capture it either.  I started just calling them bowls.  It was easier.  I've tweaked them over time, but the premise is the same.  Take grains, veggies, and a protein, mix them together, and top them with a yummy sauce/dressing.

It gets crazier.  (Can bowls of food be crazy?)  I started having them for BREAKFAST.  Leftover grains, nuts, and fruit.  Usually topped with maple syrup because everything is better with maple syrup.

Turns out, I didn't invent these!   I know!  Crazy, right?  Apparently they are called "buddha bowls" or "glory bowls."  Somehow I have spent a decade living under a rock and never knew this.  I still just call them bowls, and they are delish.

Some recent bowls:
Root Veggie Bowl
Green Bean and Sauteed Onion Bowl


I'll be sharing some of my recent bowl recipes in the upcoming posts.  What are your favorite combos?

I HATE to waste food, especially due to spoilage.  I think it angers my organized, planner side.  You know, like I didn't plan out with enough consideration?  Anyway, after a BBQ recently, we had quite a few burger buns left over.  We had some in the morning with egg and cheese sandwiches, but there were still a few left the next day.  Since they had very simple ingredients, they weren't going to last much longer.  Jemma was requesting french toast, so I improvised.

I mixed up a custard of coconut milk (still keeping the baby and I off dairy in hopes of keeping her reflux at bay), eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon.  Then, I saturated the buns and threw them on the griddle.  One flip later, they were ready to eat!

Custard...yum!!

Ready to flip

I usually have a little extra custard/egg batter left when we make french toast.  Instead of wasting it, I cook it alongside the toast and give it to the baby.  She loves it, and I like that she is getting the extra eggy goodness in!

I had mine into a little sandwich... yum!!  If I do this again, I think I'll have to do a maple butter spread of some sort to stick the strawberries to it.

What is your favorite way to use up leftovers?

We have two little berry fanatics on our hands.  We cannot keep enough berries in our house!  Luckily, we get quite a few from our CSA every week.  In addition, my parents have a raspberry patch in their backyard.  One HUNGRY little girl eats them all before we can take any home, but she enjoys them.  We planted a blackberry plant behind our house a few years ago, but the deer enjoyed it so much it was down to a stub.  We transplanted it to our garden, protected by the fence.  Last year it gave us a handful of berries, but this year it is dripping with 'em!  They will be ripe pretty soon, and we can't wait!

In the meantime, we have been picking some wild berries that grow in our neighborhood.

Wild Wineberries

We have a few patches on our property, and they are not hard to find elsewhere.  Every morning during the baby's nap Jemma and I have been going picking.


We received a new (to us) berry recently from our CSA, the red currant.  After John explained that it is a CURR-ent, not a curr-ONT like I've been saying it. Jemma and I plucked them from their stem.

Red Currants

They look like little rubies!!!  They were delish with granola and a little coconut.

Barley with berries and pecans

Couscous with strawberries and honey

What's your favorite berry?  Do you grow any?

This post was shared on Fat Tuesday!

When I was a kid, one of my favorite breakfasts was something my dad made called "Australian Eggs."  I finally asked him where the name came from.  He said they ate them like that when he was a kid, and one day his sister-in-law (who is Australian) said she was going to make a fancy breakfast for them, called Australian Eggs.  The name stuck!

As much as I loved them, I never made them.  Ever.  Why?  Because I couldn't boil an egg.

There.  I said it.

Yes, I can bake bread.  I'm no stranger to fermenting and I'm not scared of  screwing up a time or two.  Somehow, boiling eggs terrified me and was beyond my skill set.

Until now.  Enter THIS:

http://greatist.com/eat/perfect-boiled-eggs-tips

I finally had the nerve to try it, so I decided to take Jemma along for the ride.  You know, to save her from my issues.

To make Australian Eggs, You boil some eggs, butter (or coconut oil for those of us who are dairy free) some toast, and mix them all together with a little salt and pepper.  The trick is you MUST mix it all together by hand.  I don't know what it is about it, but you can't just toss it.  You have to tear the bread up with your hands and mix it all together.

Jemma helped by:

• Putting the eggs in the cold pot of water
• Peeling the eggs once they were boiled and cool
• Tearing up the bread
• Mixing it all together

GENTLY placing the eggs in the water

Cracking...

Peeling...

Pre-Smush

Smushed!

Scrambed Eggs.  Another of our favorite, easy breakfasts.  Right now the baby and I can't eat dairy, so this is another recipe that we simplified to just the basics.

I try to incorporate fresh produce into every meal.  Today, we sauteed garlic scapes from our CSA in olive oil first.  Jemma wasn't in the mood to put anything else in the eggs, so we had a tomato salad on the side.  The eggs themselves were just scrambled with a little salt and pepper.

Jemma helps by:

• Cutting the garlic scapes
• Cracking the eggs
• Scrambling the eggs
• Seasoning the eggs
• Pouring the egg mixture into the pan
• Keeping the eggs moving in the pan

Cutting garlic scapes with scissors

Cracking the eggs

Seasoned to perfection!

Mixing the eggs up

Pouring... carefully!

Keeping them moving

 Yes, she is wearing her baby doll while she cooks.  I wind up wearing Juliet while I'm cooking about 80% of the time.  I guess she picked up on it!



What delicious foods do you add into your scrambled eggs?

Cracking the eggs

Beating the eggs

Dipping the bread

Sneaking a bite!!

Flipping the bread