2 Delicious Vegan Recipes

Now let me first start by saying that I am NOT a vegan and have always been a big skeptic of this diet since I am a true lover of all things dairy. However, I decided to branch out and "not knock it till I tried it." These recipes come to us from the cookbook, "Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker" by Robin Robertson. She did not come out and state that these recipes were vegan in the recipes. I only noticed they were vegan until after I had already made them!!

Vegetable Curry
1Tb Peanut Oil
2 large carrots sliced on a diagonal
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2Tb Curry powder
1tsp ground coriander
1/4tsp cayenne pepper
2 large yukon gold potatoes, diced
8oz of green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
salt

1.) heat oil over large pan over med heat. Add the carrots and onion, cover, and cook until softened, about 5 min. Add the garlic, curry powder, coriander, and cayenne, stir to coat.
2.) Transfer veggie mixture to the slow cooker. Add potatoes, green beans, chickpeas, tomatoes, and stock. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3.) Just before serving stir in the peas and coconut milk. Season with salt.

I cooked this on high for 4 hours and it still came out great! So so sooo yummy!

Mac and "Cheese" Florentine

8oz elbow macaroni
1 10oz package of frozen chopped spinach, cooked or thawed according the package instructions
2Tb Olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup unsalted raw cashews (I used regular ole cashew from costco that were salted)
1 3/4 cups water
1 can of white beans, drained and rinsed
1Tb miso paste (this is optional and I left it out b/c I couldn't find it)
2tsp fresh lemon juice
1/4tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
pinch of ground nutmeg
salt

1.) Cook macaroni in a large stock pot until al dente. Drain pasta and return to pot. Add the spinach and combine.
2.) Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium heat, add the onion, cover, and cook until soft (about 5 min).
3.) Grind the cashews to a powder in a blender or food processor. Add 1 cup of water and blend until smooth. Next, add the onion, beans, miso paste (if using), the remaining 3/4 cup water, lemon juice, dry mustard, cayenne, nutmeg, and salt. NOTE: If you are using the miso paste you will need less salt since miso paste is quite salty. Blend until smooth. Cover the pasta and spinach mixture.
4.) *This is where I think the recipe needs tweaking. It says to transfer the mixture to a lightly oiled slow cooker and cook on low for 3 hours. HOWEVER, when i did this only after 30 minutes the macaroni began to look like it was drying out. I can't imagine what it would have looked like after 3 hours!! Sheesh!! Sooooooo...I recommend you skip the slow cooker all together. Just transfer the mac-n-"cheese" to a large casserol dish, cover with tin foil, and warm in an over for about 30 min until it is heated through. That way it won't dry out and will maintain some of its creaminess.

This recipe really blew me away! I can't believe how tasty it is. While, I still love my regular dairy filled mac and cheese this is definitely a great alternative that I will most certainly make again!

Enjoy!

P.S. Thanks to my sister in law, Lauren, who didn't mind at all that I stole this cookbook from her apartment!

~Emily

Seed Stitch Baby Peacoat

This little peacoat for Lacey's baby boy due in Sept. came out soo stinking cute!!! Its been awhile since I have finished a knit and just been completely in love with the final product. Either the pattern instructions were completely frustrating, or the finishing of the garment was a drag and took forever, or the knit was just boring. Not so here. I really enjoyed making this coat! I know many knitters hate seed stitch but I am not one of them. I find seed stitch much more interesting than ribbing or the honeycomb stich I used for some cowls not too long ago.

I love the instructions for this coat, I love the hood, I love the buttons, I love the fit, I LOVE this little coat!! I will most definitely be repeating this one. Definitely. Message me if you want the patter.

~Em

Cable Easter Vests

These little vests were nearly the death of me!! They turned out very cute and I am very glad I did them, but they became SUCH A PAIN IN THE ASS!!!

First of all, the directions were completely and utterly confusing. I don't know how anyone gets a pattern published with the direction, "Ending on a wrong side row" in there. What the hell does that mean!?!? Everytime I thought I had it figured out, I didn't, and ended up having to read the instructions backwards most of the time. And I made this vest TWICE! So frustrating!!

What makes me the most angry about it all is that I KNOW there is a better way to say what she means! I have knit Debbie Bliss patterns before and never had such a difficult time. It baffles me that this pattern probably went through multiple tests before being published and NOBODY had the same issue as me? I find that incredibly hard to believe.

Now that I have vented I will say again that I do like the vests and I am glad that I made them. However, I will not be knitting from this pattern again and I fear it has tainted my love for all that is Debbie Bliss.

~Emily

Secrets of a coupon crazy

A friend asked me for some tips on how to coupon which inspired me to write up this post. I am not a crazy like those extreme coupon people on TV who have stock piles in their garages, but I do save quite a bit!

1.) If you weren't going to buy it in the first place then you aren't really saving money. You may find a really great deal on Maalox but if you don't suffer from heartburn then why the heck are you buying it?????

2.) Only buy what you need!! This is in reference to all those people who have 40+ jars of pasta sauce taking up space in their basements and garages. Unless you plan on donating some of it to you local food bank then only buy what you need. If there is a really great deal on pasta sauce I may buy 4 jars at the most and that usually will last me until the next time it goes on sale. Which brings me to my next tip...

3.) Pay attention to sale cycles. Sale cycles are important! If you find a really good deal on something it usually will go on sale again in the future. Most sale cycles run every 3 months. Since I was talking about pasta sauce earlier we will just stick with that. For my family, 4 jars of pasta sauce will last us about 3 months so I only buy 4, NOT 40! (See tip #2).

4.) Get organized! I have a very simple coupon organizer from Staples. I love it!!!

5.) Shop where they double coupons!!! This one is easy. Many grocery stores double coupons if you have one of their "valued customer" cards.

6.) Get those "valued customer" cards! haha! Even the drug stores. They sometimes have the best deals around!! Also, if you use your Target debit card you get 5% off every single purchase. Notice I said DEBIT card. Its not credit! So great!!!!

7.) Shop early or call ahead. There are many coupon crazies out there!! If there is a really great deal on something then you can bet by the time you get there someone has already cleared them out. :( I have found the best way to avoid this is to call ahead to customer service and ask them to hold the amount you want for you. I have never ever had a problem with this! They are really great about this at my grocery store!

8.) Plan ahead about where to use which coupons where. For example, a 75 coupon is worth double at my grocery store so I may use that there instead of at Target where they don't double. However, Target will accept a manufacturers coupon AND a Target coupon so somtimes you save more that way. A little planning goes a long way!!

9.) Sometimes its just better to go generic. There are some things that are just no good generic and I totally get that, but I have found that somtimes even with the best couponing and planning that generic is still cheaper and just as good. I have found this to be true mostly with drugs like, tylenol, allergy meds, antacids, vitamins, ect. Just buy the generic version. They work just as good and are way more affordable.

10.) Pay attention to all those sale papers you throw out most of the time!! I like to go through mine and circle all the things I need first, then I make a list, then I sort my coupons out, then I determine where/when I will use them. Planning is the key!

Well, I hope that was helpful!! I am sure there are many more things you can do like go online and print coupons and such, but these are just the things that I do. Happy shopping!

~Emily

Spirituality and Motherhood

These two things just don't really go well together for me these days. At least, that has been my experience. Number one reason why: Who the hell has the time???!?!??!? Sure, I would love to meditate and have some quiet time to myself every now and then but when does that happen? I would love to sit and contemplate whats going on in the world today and politics, but first I need to figure out whats for dinner, how I'm going to make $100 stretch into groceries for 2 weeks, and keep a 20 month entertained enough all day that he will actually sleep through the night. And those are just a few things! The list goes on, and on, and on, and on, and on... I feel like all the advice on TV these days is about slowing down and taking time for yourself and how you need to put yourself back on the priority list, blah blah blah. I truly believe those people don't have kids or have full time nannies at least. This post is really just a rant. I just want to tell all those gurus to shove it! Maybe one day when my kids are grown and can take care of themselves I will meditate and "know myself" but currently, my spiritual fulfillment comes in a glass of wine at the end of what is always a very very long day. Thats all.

Feeling Fair again...

Fair Isle that is. Here is another fair isle hat that I made. This is using the exact same pattern and yarn i used to make the previous fair isle hat. This one is slightly smaller and for sale! $40ppd!! Its made with a luxury blended yarn of cashmere, merino wool, and microfiber.

For La La...

This post is just to acknowledge how awesome my friend Laura(Lori) is. Lori has the most amazing memory. She can remember something in casual conversation that you would never think twice to remember and then BAM! there it is as your birthday gift!!! She is so giving and loving and I strive to be more like her. She will never forget your birthday, she will pet-sit/house-sit your dog for 11 days straight, and make you chicken rios and belgian waffles when you least expect it. Lori, I strive to be more like you. You are my hero!
Love,
Emily