Looking in...

...looking out. When I'm truly happy I see things in a different light. A perspective I never want to lose, but end up losing in the midst of all that's crazy in this world. Especially in the winter, cloudy stuff in Minnesota winters. This state is lovely, but only 4 months out of the year. Living for those 4 months kills me when it's over, then I can't wait for it to begin. Certainly in March & April. I feel like a unhappy caged animal nursing a wound. If only I could learn how to hibernate, if only. I need a place of sunshine and smiling faces. MN you don't get that all the time. Well not everywhere you get that ALL the time, but more than 95 days a year. I would LOVE 250. I would take 250 days of sunshine. This vitamin D is priceless to pure happiness and survival. Places with this much sun live longer, have so much more joy and make me flat out jealous. I live for the sun. 

I live for sun. I live for love. I live for music. I live for words. I live for food. I live for nature. I live.

Avocado Lime No Bake Cheesecake

Avocado Lime No Bake Cheesecake

Crust:

4 graham crackers or ½ cup crunchy molasses cookies crushed

2 Tbls butter

Filling:

½  tsp plain gelatin

1/8  cup water

½ ripe avocado

½ 8 oz block of softened cream cheese

4 Tbls sugar

¼ cup plain 0% greek yogurt

zest from ½ lime

juice from ½ a lime

Crush cookies of choice. Divide butter in two ramekins, melt in microwave. Stir in cookies crumbs, set aside.

Place water over medium heat in sauce pan. Stir in gelatin, let sit while preparing other filling ingredients. 

Place avocado, cream cheese, sugar until evenly blended with mixer. Blend in greek yogurt. 

Zest in lime and squeeze lime juice and blend. Feel free to add more lime juice for taste, but not too much, you still want that avocado flavor.

Blend in gelatin from pan. 

Divide into ramekins, place in fridge for 4 hours or overnight. I placed one in the freezer for a couple hours and it was firm on the top and smooth in the middle. Really good.

Enjoy!

-shan

Quick crunchy peanut butter chocolate mug cake

Crunchy Peanut butter chocolate mug cake

1 egg
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp crunchy natural peanut butter
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp cocoa
1/4 tsp baking powder
a small handful of dark cocoa chips

In a small bowl, stir the egg, brown sugar, peanut butter, flour, cocoa and baking powder with a fork. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a greased ramekin or mug. Microwave for 1 minute. Eat straight from the ramekin or mug, or invert onto a plate. Serves 1.

Ingredients

Eggs
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, divided
Cayenne pepper
Kosher salt

Preparation
Combine eggs and 1 1/2 Tbsp. butter in a small room-temperature saucepan and season lightly with cayenne and salt. Place over medium-low heat and cook, whisking gently and constantly while scraping bottom and sides of pan, until eggs are just thickened, creamy, and small curds begin to form, 3–4 minutes total. (If mixture begins to stick to pan while cooking, remove from heat; whisk gently for 30 seconds, then continue cooking over heat.) Remove from heat

Read More http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/04/the-softest-scramble#ixzz1unzfab7l

Tabbuleh

This is one of favorite salads that I've been meaning to make for a long time. It is a good as when I tried it for the first time. I took out cumin because I'm not a huge fan of the taste.


Tabbuleh

Ingredients:
1 cup Bulgar Wheat
1.5 cups parsley minced (I like the curled)
1/8 cup mint finely chopped
1 stick green onion finely slices
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 roma tomato diced
1.5 Tbls lemon juice
1.5 Tbls olive oil
1/2 Tbls green jalapeno tabasco sauce


To prepare Bulgar:
Place 1 cup Bulgar in a bowl. Pour 1 cup boiling water over Bulgar and let stand for an hour.

In a large bowl mix together all ingredients, except lemon juice & oil. Add lemon juice and chill for 30 to 45 minutes. Right before serving toss olive oil and green sauce.

Serve under chicken or just as a side.

Tarts

Hazelnut tart is my next must make. So soft and tasty!!