DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-FOUR OF COOKING COURSE

It was Memorial Day and Lucky and I went for a walk today.  About 2,500 steps long.  It was a warm day and little Lucky was going slow and she even wanted to drink some water.  

I needed to get my butt in gear and get some cooking completed this week since there are two compilation dishes.  I need to get things ready in a certain order and before some items rot or go bad.  Major organization was needed today.  

I made the Tumeric Sauerkraut this afternoon.  It was easy but messy.  It has to ferment for four days.  

Then I made Dehydrated Tomato Crisps.  They are in the dehydrator for 24 hours and I can't wait to see how they come out.  

Then for the next week, it is a dance since I have things that need to be soaked and dehydrated for 2 hours to 24 hours.  I have to make cheese and crackers and smoked mushrooms.  So much interesting food. The planning for the next week took me an hour.

I finished watching the HBO series Mare of Easttown.  It was really good.  Twist ending.  Then I started watching the HBO series The Watchmen.  So far I like it even if I am confused.  I think this is a bit like the Amazon series The Man on the High Castle in that I didn't understand what was happening until like episode 6.  Then it all sort of came together.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRY-THREE OF COOKING COURSE

 I watched the Indy 500 as is my Memorial Day Weekend tradition.  This year I was excited to see so many legends return to run the race.  My favorite Helio won for the 4th time.  So excited!  I usually do some task while the race is on since there is a lot of down time. This year I went through two bags of junk mail.  I am sure you are saying why did you go through it and not just recycle it?  I needed to make sure I was not throwing anything important away.  I kept like three important things.  But I cleared off a big space on my table.

Then I was on a tear so I wanted to make room for my air fryer and dehydrator in a cabinet.  I don't have room in my current cabinets so I needed to make room in a cabinet that has items in it.  So I moved three things to the garage, I moved two things to my living room cabinet, and moved a few things to my upper cabinets.  I still have three things I have to find a place for. They may fit in with the dehydrator but the dehydrator is waiting to be washed and I need to see how much space it is going to take up. My kitchen is too small to be a vegan chef!  

My savory herb granola came out great.  It is ready for the next part I have to make. Instead of making that next part, I made pizza!  I defrosted the pizza dough from when I made dough a month ago.  I added sauce, vegan cheese, mushrooms and black olives (and a few basil leaves).  

I sat out side and read my book for about one half hour.  It was super relaxing. 

That was my day.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-TWO OF COOKING COURSE

 What a gloomy day!  It was overcast and windy all day.  It made it a nice day to go for a 2,000 step walk but not a nice day to do anything else.  Poor little Lucky had another stomach ache and she was miserable all day. In fact she just ate some baby food and rice a few minutes ago and it is 8:30 pm.  All day she cried and whined.  She did yoga poses and tried to sleep and sat on my lap.  She stared at me and willed me to fix it.  Unfortunately I can't fix her problem.  All I can do is rub her tummy and feel bad for her.  She gets backed up and has gas in her plumbing which hurts.  Today she pooped 5 times.  The last time got it out and that is when she could finally eat. Once she ate I could give her a big dose of her medicine that will make her feel better.  I just can't give it to her on an empty stomach.

Between dealing with her, I made Savory Herb Granola.  I used herbs from my backyard (parsley and oregano) and mixed it with oil, oats and sunflower seeds and put it all in the dehydrator.  It will be ready in 12 hrs. I got to use my new blender and it was such a joy to use something that worked so well.  The house smells so amazing with these herbs dehydrating in the kitchen.

I took the test for the chapter Raw Food Essentials and passed.  I got the delivery for the foods for the next chapter Raw Food Fundamentals.  There are some interesting products for this chapter.

Some things I have never cooked with before.  It should be interesting.

I plan on watching Cruella tonight so I better get a move on so I don't fall asleep watching it!  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-ONE OF COOKING COURSE

 My day started with making kombucha.  Last night I sterilized the jar to put it in.  This morning I made the first step of kombucha which is putting tea bags in boiling water and then adding lots of sugar.  Then add that mixture to a larger jar of water and add the kombucha scoby.  It is a lot of steps and waiting for things to boil and then for them to cool down.  It is done and now it sits and waits for 4-15 days. I tried a sip of the concoction and it tasted tart and sweet at the same time.  

The scoby is the yellow thing floating on the top.  The scoby is a slimy round thing that comes in a liquid.  Scoby is “symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast”.  Fermentation is a chemical process in which carbohydrates like sugar or starch turn into alcohol or acid.

After making the kombucha I went for a walk for about 30 minutes.  Lucky had gone with the dog walker so I was on my own. I went on a new path and I liked it a lot.  I may use this path now for awhile.  

I bought some streaming movies.  There is a film festival coming in June and I bought a season pass and 6 movies.  Then I bought Cruella for this weekend for something fun to do.  

Oh, out of the blue my health insurance sent me a letter that my monthly fee amount has been decreased.  I am not sure why but who am I to argue with them??

Until tomorrow...

ONE HUNDRED THIRTY DAYS OF COOKING COURSE

 Today was a big delivery day from my shopping "trip".  I got my Vitamix blender and my Air Fryer.  

I got the blender because my 30+ year old blender was no longer able to chop up nuts and make nut milk.  It was dying a slow death.  I got this slate Vitamix.  I hope it works well.  It seems good.  

I got this just because.  I have been seeing so many recipes from air fryers and I thought this little air fryer would be fun to try.  I got it going right away and made my dinner.

Look how great the tofu looks!  It isn't super crispy but I may not have left it in long enough.  It was good enough for dinner and the first time.  It just looks so perfect unlike when I cook it in a frying pan. 

Lucky and I went for a walk today.  We didn't go very far; about a mile.  I think I need a day off.  My hamstring has been bothering me.  I think I pushed it too far on these hills. 

The inspector came to check out the solar system.  Turns out there was something that needs to be changed in the wiring.  It wasn't done wrong, it just needs to be done different.  Plus they want to reinforce the solar panels since it is very windy where I live.  We don't want a panel to go flying off in a wind storm.  So it will be another week or so for them to fix it and then hopefully the inspector doesn't have to come back out.  

Until tomorrow...

ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-NINE OF COOKING COURSE

 A few weeks ago I put in my mouth guard and went to sleep.  The dentist had adjusted it and it made it loose in my mouth.  She did this because one of the metal holders was too tight and was causing me to have issues with one of my teeth.  One night the night guard was loose and I was asleep and I must have chomped down on it and cracked it.  In case you have never seen a serious night guard (not the type they sell at pharmacies) they are about 1/4 inch thick heavy duty plastic.  They will make you gag when you put them in your mouth. I had the thin plastic kind before and I ground through it.  

Anyway, I cracked it in my sleep.  It sounded like I bit down on a walnut shell in my mouth in my sleep.  I thought I broke my tooth.  Luckily all those teeth are metal.  So, I stopped wearing my mouth guard which isn't good because it causes my teeth to move.

Today I went to the dentist and she looked at it and decided that my 30 year mouth guard has done it's job and it is time to get a new one.  It has been ground down and adjusted so many times there is just no more she can do.  Guess how much a new mouth guard costs with no dental insurance??  $600.  Ouch!  Especially after getting a 2 new crowns in 9 months.  I should just have my paycheck direct deposited to the dentist!  Ha ha.  

After that fun trip I went for a walk.  It wasn't a long walk.  I was nervous that my Amazon delivery was going to arrive while I was gone.  Sometimes Amazon does the sneak attack.  They say they are coming at 2:45 - 4:45 and then they show up at 2:30.  Other times they show up at 7:00pm.  You just never know.

Today was the day I tried the Water Kefir with Orange Slices.  When I opened the jar I was shocked that it was like opening a bottle of seltzer.  It fizzed.  It really tasted like orange.  It was refreshing.  I kind of liked it. You can see how it got much lighter over the photos that I took on previous dates.  That is the fermenting not the lighting. 

I am going to move on to Kombucha for my next drink.

Until tomorrow...

ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT OF COOKING COURSE

Lucky and I went on another long walk today.  We tried a different route and I was sweating and out of breath.  I did some research and Google says that 2,000 steps is 1 mile.  Today I walked 4,000 steps so I walked 2 miles.  Yay!  Lucky was tired.  If I got further I may have to leave her home.  She is getting old. She used to walk that far and look at me and go "why are we stopping??"

Today I took the Water Kefir and strained it and tasted it.  It was pretty good.  It doesn't taste like anything I can compare it to.  After straining, I put the kefir grains (below) in a bottle with some liquid and put it in the fridge to "sleep".  Then I took the rest of the water kefir and put it in another jar and added orange slices for 24 hours.  Tomorrow it should taste like orange water kefir.  We shall see.

I took the  Fermented Nut Cheese and added some ingredients.  I put it on the raw bread from weeks ago.  I am not a fan of the fermented nut cheese and not because of the taste but because it overwhelmingly tastes like nuts.  I can't get it smooth enough. Maybe with the new blender I will be able to. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN OF COOKING COURSE

 The pain in my hamstring has decreased but I wanted to be careful.  I took a short walk to make sure I didn't irritate my hamstring again.  Last thing I need is to push too hard and hurt myself.  I walked with Lucky and she was confused why we didn't go far.  She wanted to play when we got home.

I had lots to do today.  I stared at my Water Kefir.  It needed a little more time.  The grains are gathering on the bottom.

 I used some of the water kefir to make Fermented Nut Cheese.  This ended up being a masterclass in patience.  My blender is more than 30 years old and blending nuts for the 20th time in 3 months has caused it to come to the end of its life, I think.  I was putting small amounts of the nut mixture in the blender at a time and the blender was having a hard time chopping up the nuts.  My nut cheese is not smooth, it is chunky.  I left it in the jar with a cloth over it on the counter until tomorrow.

Lots of glass jars sitting on my counter waiting for the next step.

Until tomorrow...

4,000 STEPS

 I went on a long walk today with Lucky.  What really happened was that we started out on what has become our regular path but there were more people out walking and doing things than we expected so I had to make a detour.  That detour made me miss the turn we usually take.  Then I saw a road that we never walked up before and I thought that road would take us to where we were supposed to be.  It turns out we were on the road we were supposed to be.  I just didn't recognize the houses.  So we walked up the little dead-end street and there were these cute stairs.  Who can resist some cute stairs?  We walked up the stairs and continued on that street.  Then I realized what street I was on and we walked way out of our way.  Once we got to the top of the hill we wound our way down and found another staircase and got the place we were originally looking for.  Then we got home. It was a total of 4,000 steps. It was a good workout.  

I saw a post on instagram of a person who has spent months "walking the Amazon". They didn't walk the Amazon obviously but walked the same number of miles.  She also asked for donations to help save the forests.  She is walking almost 4,000 miles.  

I have been thinking of setting a goal for walking.  Not the Amazon.  More like the Pacific Crest Trail.  I have always wanted to hike it but we all know that is not going to happen.  What would happen if I hurt myself?  How would I keep my medicine cold?  What types of infections would I get?  What would I eat?  There are so many questions.  I think I could "hike" the PCT in my home town and bring up pictures to look at.  Maybe read the book or watch the movie Wild again.  Motivate me to finish the hike.  I would not have to lose a boot or tape one on my foot.  It is only 2,650 miles.  I did the math on a walking calculator (did you know they have those?) If I walk very slow (2 mph) and I did the length I did today it would take 1,931 days.  But I can walk faster especially if I don't have Lucky with me and if I stay away from the horribly steep hill I walked today.  If I walk 4 mph and walk 4,000 a day it would take me 1,276 days.  I think the point is that as time goes on, you build up speed and endurance.  Before Covid I was walking 6,000 miles per day easy.  I have a smart watch and it would tell me when I hit my mark of 6,000 miles per day.  I need to think more about this but I may try it.  Good exercise and gets the blood flowing.  I was doing so good during most of Covid.  I stopped around the vaccines between my flare and the way I felt with the vaccines.  I need to get back to walking or riding the bike.

Today I did not cook exactly.  I watched the water kefir I made last night grow.  I will show it tomorrow.  I posted this picture from something I made last week.

Basically I took these items out of the fridge and tried to make something out of them for lunch.  I ended up sauting the spinach and peeled zucchini (from the Zoodles) in vegan butter.  Once they were softened, I added the red thing which was leftover marinara sauce from my Italian Menu with the zoodles.  That gave the spinach and zucchini some flavor.  When it was done cooking I put the coconut bacon on top. I didn't use the ginger sauce.  I love taking leftover ingredients and making something with it. 

Until tomorrow...

BARBECUE TOFU

 I have been working very hard to get my backyard looking nice since my gardener went AWOL.  I spent a few hours a couple of weeks ago.  Today I went out again to work for 45 minutes.  That is about my average length of time I am able to work before my back, hands, hips and feet hurt.  I pulled a bunch of weeks from and around my sand pit.  There were two areas where I cleared out some old leaves and debris and there were hundreds of ants.  I can put up with almost anything but ants.  I am creeped out by ants.  It all stems back to when I was a kid and I watched a movie where some ants attacked an island.  Yuck!

I wanted barbecue today so I made barbecue tofu and potato salad.  I called it "made-on-the-fly" potato salad because a) I didn't plan it and b) there was no plan to make it.  I just threw it together using the mayo I made the other day and some red potatoes I had.  I cut the potatoes while the water was boiling and cut the celery while the potatoes were boiling. The potato salad is awesome!  The barbecue tofu is super too!

I topped it all off with a Mug root beer.  Yum!

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-SIX OF COOKING COURSE

 Disappointment and frustration.  I got up early and was ready for my solar inspection in the window of 8 am - 12 pm.  I got a call at around 8:15 am saying the inspector woke up with a fever and since that is a sign of Covid, the inspection is canceled.  Would I like to reschedule?  I hope the inspector is okay and I rescheduled for next Thursday morning.  

Meanwhile I took Lucky for a walk to mail some mail and I saw my neighbor.  He had solar put in two weeks before me and my other neighbor had solar put in months ago.  He said his solar has not been turned on yet and they are waiting for their battery and the other neighbor has not had their solar turned on yet.  They both used companies I never heard of before.  I used a company that is bigger and more well known in the area.  My neighbor was surprised how fast my solar was put in.  I guess using a bigger company pays. 

Yesterday I made the Raw American Menu in my cooking course.  It consisted of a raw burger, ketchup, and mayonnaise. First I made a nut burger that was dehydrated.  That was simple but the dehydration took longer than I thought and it went late into the night.  The ketchup was almost the same recipe as the marinara sauce from the other day so I used the leftover and added the necessary ingredients to make it into ketchup.  The mayo this time was another recipe and came out thicker.   This morning I put it all together and made a lettuce burger. It was actually kind of tasty.  Much better than I expected.

I had a nice interaction with the solar people about a question I had.  They were very nice.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE OF COOKING COURSE

 I understand people get busy and have emergencies.  I do.  I have a life too.  Well, usually I have a life.  A busy one.  The reason I am kvetching is that I have a friend (not a close one) who contacted me to do a distanced visit a couple of weeks ago.  It was going to be my first visit after my vaccines and my two week wait period.  I was nervous and excited.  I worked on my backyard and cleaned my lawn furniture so we can sit outside.  I made a banana bread so we could have something to eat.  On the day she was supposed to come over she emailed me that a semi-emergency came up and she had to cancel.  Okay.  No problem.  I parceled out the banana bread because the last thing I needed was to eat it all.  

I waited a bit and we rescheduled for today.  I waited for another cancellation.  Nothing.  I made a vegan cheesecake (okay, it was for my class but I waited to make it so it would be ready for her visit) and cleaned off the lawn furniture again.  So today around noon I emailed her to say " are we still on?  If you need to cancel, I get it since your trip is in a few days."  I know I sounded understanding but I didn't think she would cancel again.  She cancelled on me AGAIN.  This time with no emergency just "we have a lot to do".  

Am I weird?  Is it the norm to make plans with someone and then cancel at the last minute or hours before hand?   Or not even cancel for a reason?  Then she emails "maybe we can meet up after my trip and go for a walk in the park."  And have me at the park waiting for her to arrive??  No, thank you.  

Now I have an entire cheesecake I am going to end up eating out of frustration!  Darn.  The dog walker better take a big piece! 

 

Then I worked on another recipe that had three stages.  I had to leave one stage dehydrating for a few hours.  I will show it tomorrow.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FOUR OF COOKING COURSE

I got my car back!  After two weeks my car is back safely in the garage.  It is 95% fixed. I have a hose that has a slow leak (don't worry it is not the breaks) that they can not find a replacement for.  Between Covid and shops closing, it is really hard to find parts right now. My car is 20 years old and it may be time to get another car.  Not yet but in the next year.  I just spent money fixing it so it will be fine for a while.  

I made an Italian Menu today.  First I made Zoodles which are raw zucchini spirals.  Then I made raw-mesan which is vegan Parmesan cheese made out of cashews.  Lastly, I made raw marinara sauce out of sun-dried tomatoes.  It tastes very good.  

It had a number of steps and used the same food processor so there was a lot of cleaning in my very cluttered kitchen.

I took my Orencia last night but I have not been feeling too good lately.  I thought I was okay but now I see I am not.  I have a lot of pain in my hands, legs, and feet.  My broken toe is still hurting.  I am keeping it taped. I am trying to take it easy.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-THREE OF COOKING COURSE

 I went for another walk with Lucky.  We walked to the post office to mail the payment for the solar panels.  We got notice that the inspection is definitely on Friday morning.  We went on this walk closer to lunch time and it was more crowded outside. I was less comfortable.  We will be walking later or earlier in the future.

The nuts that I dehydrated turned out wonderfully dehydrated.  I was nervous and had a hard time sleeping with the dehydrator running all night.  It was fine but I was still nervous.  I am running it again tonight but I think I will sleep better.

 I made a Berry Cheese Cake today.  I can't show you the final product because it needs to stay in the refrigerator for 6 hours.  I took a photo before I put it in the fridge.

It has a raw chocolate crust and the "cheese" part is made out of cashews.  I tasted it and it tastes good.  The pink part is strawberries pureed and added to the cheese mixture.  I did a free style swirl. I can't wait to see how it turns out tomorrow.  

Update on my car: the part they ordered came in and it didn't fit.  So maybe tomorrow it will be ready.  The problems with old cars during a pandemic...

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-TWO OF COOKING COURSE

 The roofer came again to try and seal the cracks in the roof but, alas, it was too wet again. We are now planning on Friday morning.  Unfortunately, I just found out the inspection for my solar system is also Friday morning.  I will have to reschedule the roofer.

I had a lot to do today with my cooking.  Last night I soaked two batches of nuts for two different recipes.  The recipe I was making today was a Japanese Menu.  The other set of nuts needed to be rinsed and put in the dehydrator to now dry them out.  I know that sounds weird but it changes the way the nuts behave.  

The Japanese Menu consisted of sunflower seeds soaked and put in a blender with some other items and it made a Un-Tuna Pate. It was a pate that a bit fishy because it had wakame seaweed in it.  Then I made a Ginger Sauce that is for dipping.  Lastly I put the Nori Sushi together.  I rolled the sushi with the pate and vegetables in the nori sheets.  It is definitely a different type of sushi.  

I gave the sushi to my dog walker since I do not like most sushi.  I kept some of the pate to eat with crackers and veggies.  It is really good as a dip.

I have two sets of nuts soaking for tomorrow and one set of the nuts from last night in the dehydrator.  To be a raw vegan eater you really need to be organized.  

Still no car.  They can't find a part and since things are moving slowly from Europe it is hard.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE OF COOKING COURSE

Well, this evening I heard a beeping.  It was a weird beeping and not the normal "your phone is beeping or you set an alarm or your smoke alarm needs a battery" beep.  I just had solar panels installed so I was thinking "oh no not the solar system".  I went around the house trying to locate the home of the intermittent beep.  Finally I found it downstairs from a carbon monoxide detector.  It is a plug in type with a back up battery.  I thought okay the battery has died.  I changed the battery and it was still going off. Now I got nervous.  

I was nervous because I just finished cooking with the oven door propped open for almost 2 hours.  I thought what if that caused the carbon monoxide detector to go off?  I have a very old Wedgewood stove/oven probably from the 1940's or 1950's.  I love it but I did get a little nervous when the carbon monoxide detector went off.  

Turns out the carbon monoxide detector had just lived it's life.  I figured it out by putting my new carbon monoxide detector downstairs and it didn't go off and then I put the old detector outside and it was still going off.  It was clear there was no carbon monoxide.  The detector just died.  I also called my brother just to check and he agreed that I was not going to died from carbon monoxide any time soon.  

I cooked Raw Bread today.  I had to clean my new dehydrator before any work could start.  

First, I had to make more almond milk to get the nut pulp.  The nut pulp is used to make the raw bread.  I mixed the ingredients for the raw bread and added thyme from my garden.  I put it in the oven to dehydrate.  Once it was "dry" I cut it into slices and put it in my dehydrator to finish it up. I put olallieberry jam on one, almond butter and roasted sesame seeds on another, vegan cream cheese and sun-dried tomato on another and vegan gouda cheese and olive on the last one.  The raw bread is nutty and really good.  It isn't dry but moist. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED TWENTY OF COOKING COURSE

 We got up early and went for a long walk. Just as we stepped outside, it started to rain. We had to come back for a coat and umbrella. By the time we got two blocks it stopped.  We picked up my mail and walked home.

The roofer arrived around 9 am to seal a few cracks as well as the crack in my shingles he found the other day. I will be happy to have that fixed. Every time it rains heavy I hear “tick tick tick” where the water is dripping and it drives me crazy. Hopefully this crack is the problem. The roofer showed up and got up on the roof. It was too wet to do any sealing but he took a good photo of the solar panels for me. 

Once the roofer left I started cooking. I first made nut milk in order to make a few more recipes. Then I used some of the nut milk to make Chia Porridge. When I made Chia Porridge before I didn’t like it very much. This time I made it with sweetener, cocoa, cinnamon, vanilla, and chia seeds.  It tasted like hot cocoa or chocolate milk. I put bananas and chocolate nibs on top. 

I had to have a shopping delivery of nuts. I had no idea how many nuts raw food uses.  I bought a bunch of nuts to last for a bit. 

I was very tired today and took a nap. I m not sure why I am so tired but a nap helped. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED NINETEEN OF COOKING COURSE & SOLAR POWER

 Big news! Running on solar power. They finished putting in the solar panels and hooked everything up. I am good to go almost. I have to wait a few weeks until inspection for it to be fully operational.  I got my final electric bill for the full amount before solar today. Kiss that goodbye! 

I cooked (or should I say made since it is raw) nothing today. I had to purchase more nuts and such. The thing with raw is that it takes a lot of nuts. I am constantly soaking nuts to do things with. The nuts need to soak overnight to get them “activated” or soft. 

Last night I used my leftover pasta to make a cute little dish and I posted that today. 

I also posted a cute photo of Lucky since it is International Chihuahua Day. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEEN OF COOKING COURSE

I got up early because the solar people said they would be here between 8am and 10 am.  Don't you wish you could tell people you would be there "between 2pm and 4pm".  It would make it so much easier.  Of course I was ready at 7:55am and they showed up at 9:45am.  But they showed up and they were ready to work.  My roofer showed up also.  I sent him two reminders: one last night and one this morning.  I realize that is the best way to get action.

My roofer came to make sure they were adhering the panels to the roof in the right way.  You may think that is redundant but years ago I had a deck attached to my little roof and I found out when it rained months later that they adhered it by making holes in my roof and the water leaked through to my ceiling.  Yeah.  Nice.  I hired my current roofer to remove the deck and fix the roof and put the deck back on.  That is why I trust him.

The solar people got 1/2 way done.  They worked very hard all day.  It was serendipitous that my car is still in the shop because they stored their stuff in my garage overnight.  

I used the morning to make make Coconut Kiwi Porridge.  In the USA that is oatmeal with apple, cinnamon, coconut, kiwi, walnuts, and hemp seeds.  It tastes really good and is really filling.  

I spent most of the day dealing with solar install and roofers.  

I also think I broke my toe.  I thought it was just bruised but I am now leaning toward it being broken.  It happened last week.  I was rushing to do something (who remembers what now) and I hit it really hard on the dog stairs going to the couch.  I usually walk around the stairs but Lucky was standing at the base of the stairs and I was in a hurry and I tried to leap over the stairs.  Hence, banging my foot.  It hurt a lot.  I ignored it like most of us do.  I assumed it was just bruised and as time went on, it got worse.  I had another friend who broke her toe and she went to the hospital for x-rays.  The ER told her basically there is nothing they can do but tape it to another toe and she needs to keep off it.  Well, I can do that by myself.  So, after a week of ignoring it, I taped it and it feels much better being taped.  It still hurts but being taped seems to help.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEEN OF COOKING COURSE

 I went for my first walk by myself today. Lucky was off at the beach with the dog walker and I decided to go off for a quick walk.  I went on the same circle as I did with Lucky but this time there were many more people out and about.  I won't go at that time again.  It was during late lunch time.

I started the Raw Food Essentials chapter in the cooking course today.  I still have one recipe to make in the last chapter but I had to wait for one ingredient that was delivered tonight.  I made Raw Vegan Chocolate Brownie with Chocolate Ganache.  I am so surprised how good it is.  The ganache is so fantastic  that I want to swim in it. I have plenty left to eat for a few days.

For those of you wondering, it is made out of nuts, dates, cocoa powder, and sweetener.  Then added raisins, cocoa nibs, and nuts.

The solar panels are being installed tomorrow. I am charging electronics just in case the electricity gets turned off.  So exciting.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED SIXTEEN OF COOKING COURSE

 Lucky and I went for another walk.  I have been stretching every day to get rid of my shin splints.  This morning my shins felt back to normal and I stretched very well.  We went on a walk and then I stretched again.  So far so good no shin splints.

I made a Pre-Workout Green Smoothie today.  It contained bananas, spinach, matcha powder and cocoa powder.  It tasted very good.  I was much more careful to go easy with the greens this time.  A handful does not mean My handful.  

My car is not ready yet.  They need a part or two and it should be ready tomorrow.  It is an old car so parts are always hard to obtain.  My car is a 2002.  It turns 20 next year.  It still has less than 100,000 miles on it.  

The solar people contacted me and we have a tentative install date of this Thursday.  I am excited.  I need to plan tomorrow since I am sure my electricity will be turned off for some of the day.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FIFTEEN OF COOKING COURSE

 Today's cooking was a success.  It was nice to have a success after a few not so successful dishes.  Today I made Mango Lime Protein Bars.  

I don't normally like protein bars because they are so dry. These homemade protein bars are moist and delicious.  The lime comes out and the mango is subtle.  The chocolate on top is a delight.  This will be a fun treat this week.  

This morning I took my car into the shop.  I didn't realize the hours changed so I showed up very early and sat in my car.  I spoke to my rep on Friday so he knew what needed to be done and I pulled my car in the shop and left the keys.  I got a taxi home and a text from the shop.  My car is still there waiting for parts.  Not too much is wrong with the car which is surprising considering it hasn't been serviced in almost 2 years.  Granted it sat in the garage for one year.  I knew the fluids were super low as well as the tire pressure.  They also recharged the battery to 100%.  I thought I needed new brakes but they said the brakes were just dirty from sitting.  So, I should get my car back tomorrow.  

Until tomorrow...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY & DAY ONE HUNDRED FOURTEEN OF COOKING COURSE

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!  I had a good day with my fur baby.  She is so cute and loving.

We did some more weeding in the backyard.  We made some more progress.  It is slow but it is getting done.

I made Sprouted and Fermented Tempeh Sweet Potato Bowl.  It was different and colorful.  I liked it but not like I like pizza and ice cream.  It had avocado, sprouts, spinach, beets, tempeh and sweet potato. Then a dressing that was pretty good.  

Until tomorrow...

BLOGIVERSARY & DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTEEN OF COOKING COURSE

 Today is the 10 year anniversary of my blog!   The ten year anniversary present is tin.  So I guess tin foil it is.  It is crazy that I have been writing this blog for 10 years. 

 When I started this blog I was updating my friends and family about my rheumatoid arthritis and how I was doing.  Over the years it has evolved into living with rheumatoid arthritis.  I think it is important to talk about how to live with rheumatoid arthritis.  Sometimes the living is boring but that is life, right?! 

I have had blog projects, photo projects, happiness project and other blog activities to keep the blog interesting.  Currently I am attending a cooking course so that is my main focus.  Cooking good food and taking great pictures.  When I get out of my home when Covid is controlled, I will be taking more photographs.  I am getting back to my roots and my passion.  

Today I made Healthy Cookie Dough Dessert.  It is made out of chickpeas and peanut butter and it tastes like cookie dough.  I added chocolate chips.  

I spent another hour in the backyard weeding and cleaning up.  I am taking sections and clearing them out.  I figure it will take me a month of weekends to get most of the weeding done.  I tried to text the gardener again but she is AWOL.  I need to find another gardener I think.  

My shin splints are feeling better.  I took a bath and used my Jacuzzi jets for the first time in over two - three years.  Two of the jets didn't work much but I Googled why and I think I know why.  I am going to try during my next bath.  I forgot how much fun a Jacuzzi bath is. 

Until tomorrow...

ONE HUNDRED TWELVE OF COOKING COURSE

 I took my second walk today.  I needed to go to the post office and mail something and pick up my mail.  So I got up early (before the post office got busy), put Lucky's harness on and we took a walk.  She was so excited.  I was less so since my one shin had the beginnings of shin splints.  I stretched but alas it didn't make a difference.  I now have shin splints in both shins.  I stretched all day to see if it got better.  I'll probably take a bath in the morning.

I tend to get shin splints easily since I was a kid.  I made a mistake when I was a teen.  I had shin splints and I decided to go ahead and run a race anyway.  Now I get shin splints pretty easily.  Young and dumb.  Just one of many things I did as a youngster that I am paying for as an adult.

I made Oven-Baked Beetroot Chips Made without Oil today.  Basically I cleaned and washed the fresh beets. Then I used a mandolin to slice them thin.  Then I added salt and spices and let them sit for 15 minutes.  Then I baked them for 25 minutes.  They came out slightly crispy.  Not like potato chips from a bag.  They are very tasty and I like them.  

I managed to do this all without getting any beet juice on my white counters.  That was the best part!  

Until tomorrow...

ONE HUNDRED ELEVEN OF COOKING COURSE

 I woke up this morning and pulled the Chia Pudding out of the refrigerator.  Yesterday I made Chia Pudding and put it in the fridge to set overnight. This morning is was a thick pudding or tapioca type dish.  I added some cocoa bits, coconut strips and banana slices to the top.  After a few bites I realized I am not a fan of chia pudding.  The taste was fine but the texture was like tapioca and I don't like tapioca.  I don't think I will make this again.

Today I went outside for a walk with Lucky for the first time since I locked down.  It was a little scary.  I wore my two masks until I went uphill and couldn't breath then I took one off.  I went into a neighborhood where I didn't know anyone so I wouldn't have to stop and talk to people.  I only saw a few joggers.  Lucky loved it and wanted to go further.  I need to figure out a better trek that isn't all uphill.  It was good to walk on pavement and not a treadmill.

Until tomorrow...

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO

 Happy Cinco de Mayo!  I made a twist on nachos for dinner to celebrate.  My nachos had corn tortilla chips, lentils, baked Japanese sweet potatoes, salsa, tomatoes, and vegan cheese.  I used mozzarella cheese.  It tasted so good I ate the whole thing.  I am so full right now I can't move.

Today is also a day of reflection.  It is the anniversary of Happi's birthday.  I miss her so much still.  

A funny story from when I took Lucky to the vet yesterday.  I haven't cut my hair since last August or October.  I can't remember.  I was in my car with my mask on and the vet came out and came to my car.  He pet Lucky and walked away. He has known me for 25 years and he walked right up to my car, pet my dog and didn't recognize me!!  Then I got a call.  It was him asking where my car was.  He came over again and laughed so hard.  He said with my long hair he just didn't recognize me.  So funny!

Lucky's test results came back very good.  Nothing wrong.  He said she is in very good condition considering her age.  She is about 13 years old but she still acts like a puppy.  People can't believe she is that old.  My neighbor's chihuahua is the same age and she looks way older than 13 years old.  Maybe the adoption agency was wrong about her age when I adopted her.  Who knows?  Good news is that she is doing well.  I did have to change her food as an experiment.  She was licking constantly and I already stopped feeding her the dry food in the morning and now I need to stop feeding her the dry food at night because she may be allergic to chicken.  If it makes her stop licking I will do almost anything because the licking drives me crazy.  First it was the snorting and now it is the licking.  The dog seems to have developed allergies in her old age.  Getting old is the pits even for dogs...

Until tomorrow...

30TH ANNIVERSARY MOVING TO WEST COAST & DAY ONE HUNDRED TEN OF COOKING COURSE

 I can't believe I have been living on the West Coast for 30 years.  It seems like only a few months ago I moved here and then went back and got my car and drove across the country.  But I guess it was 30 years ago because I had an AM/FM/cassette radio and a portable radio/CD player in my car to listen to music during the trip.  There were no cellphones widely owned and I had to call from payphones or hotel rooms.  

I remember my first few months on the West Coast.  It didn't rain.  The first time it rained I pulled my mattress up against the window so I could fall asleep to the pitter patter of the rain.  Coming from the East Coast where it rains all summer long (summer showers and thunder storms), it was so weird to me that it didn't rain for months. It was years until I heard my first thunder storm.

I made a Japanese Sweet Potato Lentil Bowl today.  It was supposed to be made with pumpkin but there are no pumpkins this time of the year.  It was very tasty.  

It is also Star Wars Day!  May the Forth be with you!  

Today was Lucky's day at the vet.  She had her nails done (cut), her anal glands cleaned, her shots given, her blood drawn, and her teeth checked.  She has to go back in a month to get her teeth cleaned.  He said she looked good!  She was all ready when they came to the car to get her.

We sit in the car and they come to the window to consult and then they take her inside.  I got a good parking spot and hung out making phone calls while she was inside. Then they come bring her back and make you pay.  It was my first foray into the new world.  I was double masked and never left the car.  But we did walk to the mailbox when we got home.  Lucky was very excited.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED NINE OF COOKING COURSE

 I thought I had a gig zoom interview today.  Or I thought I did.  I made the appointment last week.  We agreed on a date and time.  But today I could not find the zoom invite.  Then I panicked; what if they thought I was coming in person?  I called their office and left a message explaining that I was sorry if I made a mistake.  Five minutes later I got a call back saying they made the mistake.  They forgot to tell me that they needed to cancel today and reschedule.  I understood because they had a crisis that was in the local news.  We rescheduled for later this week.  

This left me more time to cook.  I made a Post-Workout Smoothie Bowl.  It had kale, blueberries, bananas and other stuff. I think I put too much kale in the blender. The smoothie turned the color of 1970's kitchen appliances.  That olive green that was so popular.  It was not too attractive to eat but it tasted really good.  I made a lot and could not finish it all.  

The toppings are cocoa nibs, hemp seeds and popped amaranth.  

The chapter is very interesting.  Very different food.  I am interested in learning it.

Until tomorrow...

BANANA BREAD

I got my house all ready because today I was having my first socially distanced, masked visit in my backyard.  I was really nervous.  What if she had to use the restroom?  I didn't want her going upstairs to use the guest bathroom so I cleaned my bathroom.  I cleaned my bedroom so she didn't have to see my mess.  

I cleaned up the backyard a bit by picking up dog poop and cleaning the furniture.   I set the furniture six feet apart and put a little table in the middle.  

I made banana bread for us to munch on during our visit.  I put sparkling water on ice.  I was ready.  Then I got the email.  She needed to postpone due to a family issue.  I understood.  

I look at it as more banana bread for me!  The banana bread is moist and crunchy on the top.  Delicious!

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED EIGHT OF COOKING COURSE

 Today was my cousin's daughter's Bat Mitzvah.  I couldn't attend so I watched the ceremony on zoom.  It was very nice.  I didn't get to see the party but I got a full report from my brother who did attend.  He said it was a party and there was dancing and food and music.  The decorations were nice.  

I finished up The Perfect Vegan Brunch chapter and took the test.  I passed and got my certificate.  Now I am on to the Healthy & Easy Plant-Based Cooking chapter.  I started with Easy Meal Prep - Tofu Bowl.  I made enough food for three dinners.  I ate one tonight and it was really good.  The best part was that it was filling.  It is 9 pm and I am not hungry.  The bowl has tofu, broccoli and brown rice.  There is also a sauce on top and it is ready to go for tomorrow night.

My costochondritis is worse.  It hurts so much to cough or sneeze.  I am going to bed now.  I was awake really early because of the bat mitzvah.  

Until tomorrow...