The Green Glass

Isn't it funny how you favor certain items.  They become your favorite or your go to item.  It could be a shirt, a pair of shoes, or a hat.  And, sometimes it's a green glass.

Whenever Nick comes home to visit, he always goes for the green drinking glass.  I only have one green glass.  I  bought it because it looked cool.  The kids all asked about it, like,

"Why did you buy it?"

"Why is it so thick?"

"Why is it green?"

"Can I use it?"

Nothing gets by my kids.  They usually notice new things when they appear in or around the house.  Once they notice the item, the questions start pouring out.  One of the most asked questions is, "Why did you buy this ____?  The old item could be falling apart, have holes in it or is broken and my children will ask why I bought a new one.  They are excited about the new item but feel close to the older item that is being replaced.  And yes, they ask about the fate of the older item.

It's funny.  I will see the green glass in the cabinet and I won't use it.  In my mind, the glass belongs to Nick.

Nick has a special spot to hide his  the glass he is using when he is here visiting.  A spot in the corner on the kitchen counter.  He purposely leaves the glass there when he leaves.  I always make sure that the glass is clean and ready for him to use when he comes home.  

Before his next visit, I'm going to have to remember to place the clean glass in his special spot before he arrives home.

Vegan Diaries: Vegetable Stir Fry

As I have mentioned in previous posts, during quarantine I did quite a bit of cooking and baking.  I started making this stir fry recipe and it became a huge hit with everyone.  Yes.  My meat lovers really got into the tofu!  I like that this recipe is flexible and I can add whatever vegetables that I have an abundance of in my refrigerator.   Although, I do have to admit, I'm a big fan of broccoli in this recipe.

Oh, and, if tofu isn't your thing, feel free to substitute chicken or leave it out completely.

Here's the recipe:

Vegetable Stir Fry

ingredients:

1 TBSP sunflower seed oil

8oz tofu*

ginger

1/2 cup carrots, sliced

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

1 cup broccoli florets

3/4 cup bell peppers, sliced

1/2 cup water chestnuts, drained and sliced

3/4 cup baby corn, drained

1 tsp ginger

3 cloves garlic, minced

for the sauce:

1/4 cup vegetable broth

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tsp cornstarch

directions:

Heat oil in small pan.  Add tofu and ginger and cook until desired consistency (I like it to be a little brown on sides).  Set aside.

In large pan, heat oil.  Add carrots and mushrooms and cook until tender.

Add broccoli, peppers, water chestnuts and 2 TBSP of water to pan.

Cook for 3-5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Add garlic and ginger and cook for about 30 seconds.  Season vegetables with salt and pepper to taste.

In a small bowl, mix the vegetable broth and soy sauce.  Pour mixture over vegetables.

In separate small bowl, mix cornstarch with 1 TBSP cold water.  Add mixture to vegetables and bring to a boil.  Cook until sauce starts to thicken (about a minute or two).

Serve over rice.

*Make sure tofu is drained of water.  Press with paper towels to get rid of excess water.  Cut tofu into cubes.

*This recipe is great because you can add any vegetables:  Cauliflower, baby corn, snow peas, peas, green beans, etc.  Use your imagination.

Enjoy!

Fun National Days in August

I thought I would start this at the beginning of the month so everyone can mark their calendars and celebrate all of these fun National Days.  Oh, and let me know in the comments if you got some of the references.

Here we go:

August 4  National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day

Pour yourself a glass of milk (or almond milk) and enjoy America's #1 favorite cookie today!   

August 5 National Underwear Day

A great way to celebrate today would be to put on a clean pair of underwear.  Did your mom ever tell you to, "Make sure you are wearing clean underwear.  You never know when you will be in an accident!"   Break out a clean pair those boxers, tighty whities, bikinis, briefs or thongs.  Need more ideas on how to celebrate today?  How about 

watching Tom Cruise in Risky Business?  

read about the history of underwear in, "Unmentionables:  A Brief History of Underwear," by Elaine Benson.  

buying some new underwear  

Clean out your underwear drawer

It's also

National Work Like a Dog Day

Today is a great day to go and meet every challenge you face head on.   Feel free to share on social media how hard you work or even a video of your average workday.  I know that today I will be working hard like my weird dog, Pippen by laying around on our back deck.

August 6  National Fresh Breath Day

I added this day because I thought it was odd to celebrate fresh breath.  I did a little digging and this day is in place to celebrate oral health.  So, brush your teeth a few extra times today.  Don't forget to pop a mint (or three) when getting close to your special someone.  And, it doesn't hurt to pop a mint if you are wearing a face mask.  Does anyone else think they have bad breath when wearing a face mask or is it just me?

August 10  National S'mores Day

"You want a s'more, Smalls?"

"Some more of what?"

"No.  Do you want a s'more?"

"I haven't had anything yet so how can I have some more of nothing?"

"You're killing me Smalls!  These are s'mores stuff, 'kay?  Pay attention.  First you take the graham.  You stick the chocolate on the graham.  Then you roast the mallow.  When the mallow's flaming, you stick it on the chocolate.  Then you cover it with the other end.  Then you scarf.  Kind of messy, but good.  Try some."

Does anyone know what movie that's from?

August 12  National Middle Child Day

Wow.  Now you get your own day.  You must be Mom's favorite.

August 13  National Left Handers Day

It's time to recognize all of those Lefties out there (including RT).   Once thought as "the hand of the devil," parents would force their children to use their right hand.  Now left handers are accepted and make up about 10% of the population.  Left handers grew up and survived a right handed world.  Why not celebrate by taking your favorite left hander out for lunch today?

August 15  National World Honey Bee Day

Today we celebrate bee keepers, honey lovers and all blooming things.  It's a way to encourage people to buy locally grown honey.  How you can celebrate the day?  Plant some wildflowers, buy locally grown honey or add a little honey to your tea this morning

August 16  National Rum Day

Rum is a clear alcoholic drink which is the byproduct of sugar production.  It can also be made directly from sugar cane juice.   I'm sure you don't need a background on rum or even a reason to drink it.  Cheers!

It's also 

National Tell a Joke Day

Knock, Knock.

Who's there?

Tank.

Tank who?  

You're welcome.

August 17  National Thrift Shop Day

A great way to celebrate would be to go pop some tags, especially if you have twenty dollars in your pocket.   You can also celebrate today by donating your unused items to your local thrift shop.

 

August 26  National Dog Day 

National Dog Day encourages dog ownership of all breeds, including, mutts, purebreds, mixes and weird dogs.  The purpose of the day is to find homes for rescue dogs.   Pippen makes the calendar twice this month.  Today I will be celebrating by giving my weird rescue mutt lots of love.

August 30  National Beach Day

Today is to celebrate the sandy beaches all around the world.  It's also a reminder to keep them clean.  Always remember to clean up after yourself (Don't litter!).  Take home what you bring to the beach.  I need to be a part of National Beach Day.  Anyone care to join me?

Chicken Tacos

Yes, I'm a vegetarian / vegan.  But, remember, I live with carnivores.  During quarantine, I made quite a few vegan and vegetarian meals.  My family enjoyed my cooking.  I think they liked the normalcy of  sitting down for dinner and enjoying a nice meal.  After a couple of months of these meals, I decided that I should branch out a little and make them something that they would like to eat.  In other words, something with meat.  

I found this recipe for Chicken Tacos and thought I would give it a try.   It can be challenging trying new recipes when you can't taste them.  I rely heavily on my customer's  family's input.

I am pleased to report that after making these Chicken Tacos, I received a thumbs up from everyone.  In fact, they asked that these tacos become part of a meal rotation.  I would call that a success!  

Well, enough talking.  Let's get down to cooking.  Here's the recipe:

Chicken Tacos

ingredients:

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 TBSP oil

12 mini flour or corn tortillas

1 cup pico de gallo

1 avocado, diced

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1 lime, cut into wedges

directions:
In a small bowl, combine the chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper.  Mix and then rub the mixture onto the chicken.

Heat oil in large skillet.  Cook chicken until golden brown, making sure the chicken is cooked through.  Let chicken cool before dicing into bite size pieces.

Serve chicken in tortillas.  Top them with the pico de gallo, avocado, cilantro and lime.

If you try these Chicken Tacos, let me know what you think!

Enjoy!

Study Hall

I was taking a little break from things and decided to hand write a letter to my friend, Patti.  Patti and I have been writing letters on and off since fifth grade.  When we entered high school, we decided to write our letters in code.  The code makes it easier on you if you are ever caught by a teacher writing a letter or a note during class.  If caught, the teacher usually reads the letter out loud to the class.  If the letter is in code, they have no idea what the letter says.  This happened a couple of times and the teachers were embarrassed because they could not read the letter and gave it back.

High School was many, many years ago and, believe it or not, we still remember the code.  

This time, as I was writing my letter, I felt a flash back to my many years  time in study hall where I would write many pages to Patti.  I instantly felt like going back in time, just so I could be in Study Hall, writing a letter.  Without any other interruptions.

It's funny, because I spent so much time in Study Hall in High School and couldn't wait to get out of there, and now, Here I am, many many years later, wanting to go back.

P.S.  As I was writing this post out long hand on paper, I used some of our code short cuts.

Karen Stories

I thought I would amuse everyone with another Karen story from my daily retail life.

I get to experience real life Karens every day and I thought it would be fun to share my experiences with you, because, why should I keep these gems all to myself?  

So, sometimes the customer is crabby and wants to speak to a manager.  I think there is a better word out there for the word crabby.  I can't think of it, can you?  And, well, sometimes the customer is just, well?  There really isn't a nice way to put it.  Sometimes, the customer is just ....  a psycho!

Remember, this is soon after the end of quarantine, when we re-opened the store back in the beginning of June.  So, these customers have been cooped up for almost three months with little to no social interaction.  Scary, right?  

By the way, feel free to comment on this (and all other Karen) posts.  I would love to hear your reaction!

OK.  Here we go!

I had a customer who was returning bear spray.  We have outdoor gear and bear spray is used by campers and hikers.  It's pretty strong and, well, used on bears.  Thus the name....bear spray.  Well, this customer told me that he purchased the bear spray so he could use it on people.  

Now, remember, it's bear spray.  It's specifically made for bears.  That is why it's called bear spray.  

The customer told me that he called the police and asked them if he could use the bear spray on people.  The police told him not to use it on people and that he could be sued.  He really wanted to use the bear spray so that he could, "Spray people dead."  Since he found out that he can't do that, spray people dead, he has to return the spray.  

I don't think that three months in quarantine was enough for this guy.  He could probably just stay in quarantine for a really long time.  

I know I wouldn't want to get on Bear Spray guys bad side.  Would you?

Vegan Diaries: Roasted Eggplant Hummus

I love the summer time.  Lots of sunshine and lots of fresh vegetables from the garden.  

This year I planted eggplant.  I think I must have picked a weird  odd different type of eggplant this year.  The eggplant that are growing this year are coming in crescent shaped.  I think they are either Little Finger Eggplant or the Organic Heirloom Long Purple Eggplant.  

Normally I make Eggplant Parmesan or Moussaka during the summer with my eggplant harvest.  I'm not sure my small, skinny eggplants will be able to make these dishes.  I would need quite a few of them in order to make one of these dishes.

I did some digging and came across this Roasted Eggplant Hummus.  You can find details and pictures here.   Because my eggplant are so small, I roasted three of them.  During this process, I also learned that roasted eggplant is quite tasty. 

Here's the recipe:

Roasted Eggplant Hummus

ingredients:

1 eggplant

3 cloves garlic

2-3 TBS Olive Oil

1 can chick peas

2 TBSP Tahini

3/4 tsp cumin

1 1/4 tsp paprika

2-3 TBSP lemon juice

2-3 TBSP Aquafaba

salt to taste

directions:

Oven 450.

Cut eggplant lengthwise and place onto lined baking sheet.  Score the eggplant and brush with olive oil.  Peel garlic, brush with oil and place in tin foil and place on same baking sheet.  Roast for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Scrape the inside into a bowl and set aside.  Discard the skin.

Add everything to your food processor (chick peas, roasted garlic, eggplant, tahini, salt, cumin, paprika, lemon juice and 2 TBSP of aquafaba.  Blend until you reach your desired consistency.  Feel free to add more aquafaba for a smoother consistency.

Feel free to add kalamata olives or drizzle with olive oil.  Serve with pita chips or fresh veggies.

*My eggplants were really small and skinny.  I used three eggplants and they were roasted in about 15 minutes.

Enjoy!