pronunciation key

ah-loo go-bee

etymology

Hindi

alternative spelling

aloo gobi

 a dry Indian dish

made with 

potato

cauliflower

spices

I heard all about it

while tuning in to

the Cooking Channel's

How to Live to 100

host

Jason Wrobel
who with goofy style and wit
had me craving cauliflower
for its flavor
 texture
and
health benefits

by chance
I stumbled onto this program
and quickly tried to write down
the recipes
let me tell ya
these are my kind of recipes
I was so excited!
admittedly slow on the uptake

turns out
this is a whole food
plant based program
although not labelled as such
it is...

trust me.

Way to go Cooking Channel!

There were so many 

great recipes

but since I had everything on hand

to make alu gobhi

aloo gobi it is

or

was

and here it is

for you

Alu Gobhi

Recipe courtesy of Bhojanic

Total Time:

1 hr 5 min

Prep:

30 min

|

Inactive Prep:

--

|

Cook:

35 min

Level:

Easy

Yield:

4 to 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 3 to 4 tablespoons coconut oil (any oil with a high smoke point will do)
• 1 tablespoon whole cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons tomato puree
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 3 teaspoons salt
• 1 medium head cauliflower, cut into 2-inch florets

• 2 tablespoons ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 to 4 pinches cayenne
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS

Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the cumin. As soon as the seeds begin to pop, stir in the tomato puree and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in the potatoes and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt, reduce the heat to low and cook, covered, until the outer layer of the potato is cooked, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the cauliflower, ginger, coriander, turmeric, cayenne and the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and stir it all together without damaging the florets. Cover and cook until the cauliflower is tender, 15 to 20 minutes, adding 1/2 cup of the cilantro during the final minutes of cooking. Serve garnished with the remaining 1/2 cup cilantro.

footnote: I used 5-6 Tablespoons coconut oil paying special attention to temp and stirring frequently...when things seemed to be sticking to the pot I added vegetable broth in small doses...and finally, I used Italian parsley since I didn't have cilantro (gasp!) 

I served it

right along side  

brown basmati rice

there was heat

tentative with the cayenne

at 2 teaspoons

I don't consider myself

a spice wimp

I boldly add jalapenos

to my sub sandwiches

but 

oh me

oh my oh

dis had my nose running

next time

I will enjoy it

at a 1 alarm temp...

1 teaspoon

maybe starting at 1/2 and building

from there.

Either way

this was worth sharing

and I hope you enjoy.

Check out your local listing

and check out

How to live to 100

as Martha says...

it's a good thing.

as Julia would say...

bon appetit!

Wishing Jason Wrobel much luck

for he has some

large

high heels 

to fill!

big plans

brought down

to size

because 

as much as I would

love

the kitchen from

Practical Magic

It's Complicated

Father of the Bride

it ain't happening 

right now

it's all about

b-a-l-a-n-c-e

and in this case that would be

a balancing of finances

a balancing of 

wants

because

Spring dreaming

has grabbed 

hold

and I am hoping

to accomplish

something along this scale

with that in mind

we can 

make do

with what we have

indoors

rather than

a complete renovation

that quickly

got out of control

with words like

bump-out

bump-in

knock down

tossed around

I needed to re-calculate

re-calibrate

the next morning

after a good night of 

sensible sleep

we decided to

settle

not a bad thing

very

practical magic stuff

requiring

little more than

a brief relocation

of kitchen gadgets

and

a dose of old fashioned

elbow grease

and we are well on our way

to a cleaner

functioning 

kitchen

that won't require a big

reveal party

small changes

with

big impact

for the cook of the house

a-hem

that'd be me

with a long awaited farmhouse back splash

primed

and waiting for paint

sure

 that counter top

screams

80's

dusty rose

but

I choose to call it

retro

makes all the difference

don't ya think?

not to mention

it goes perfect

with my retro appliances

continuing 

patch ceiling and walls

(check)

finish-up with a fresh

coat of

paint

that's our new

improved

plan

until I can decide

if I really want painted cabinets

because

as much as i love

the clean 

bright

cheerful look

I'm not a huge fan of 

maintenance

and other than a good scrubbing

with 

Murphy's Oil Soap

each spring

 wood

requires

little attention

and that's my kind of kitchen

because there's 

a swimming pool

that won't

wait!

~this moment~

a celebration of

Spring

in 

living color

Finding joy

in 

everyday

moments

:)

it's spring!

It's kind of an

unwritten rule

as a blogger
to post on

this oh
so very
special day

there was a part of me

that wanted to

write about our last day of winter

because

oh, what a winter

it was...

deserving of accolades and praise!

I took this picture one

week ago

here it is today

I know there are parts of the

country that were blessed

yes blessed!

with more snow last night

just this once

we were missed

and we are expecting to see 

50 degrees 

tomorrow

I do however 

take my obligations

as a blogger

very seriously

so today

in keeping with strict guidelines

I will focus on 

the happenings

that reassure

in the promise

of springs arrival

the sweetest little girl

on the planet

celebrates a birthday

snow boards

are collected and put in storage

a non-wearing polish girl

is compelled to buy

the palest of pinks

buds

appear

in response

the sky  

smiles down

bluer than ever

homemade cards with flowers

are displayed

and enjoyed

each time I reach for

my finger-less

 gloves

pretty pink

and new green

combine in a way

that make you

feel hopeful

even mom's sweet 

china string dispenser girl

adorned in a delicate calico dress

adds to the charm

of this corner

like a breath of fresh air

lemons

for fragrance

flavor

and color

happy yellow!

and when the juice is

blended with

confectioners sugar

something

magical happens

and the plate of Norah's Lemon-Lemon Cookies

(thank you, sweet-toothed Isa from PPK)

disappears quickly

since I am thanking...

thank you

Mom

for 

Meyer lemon

fragranced

kitchen hand soap

what a refreshing blast of

springtime

each time I wash my garlic-y fingers

but nothing

no

NOTHING

speaks louder

of the vernal equinox

than

a back deck

free from snow

with access to the grill

and the consideration

of putting shovels

to rest

well...

that

AND

sprouts!

It's there if you look...

spring is sprouting

all around us.

Oh, Happy Day!

stirrings

closely linked to one's 

roots

this wasn't part of
the garden tour
at the art museum
but it spoke to me
as I was walking by
and asked to have its
picture taken

on St. Paddy's Day

chores were made joyful

with a Celtic

backdrop

pictures and music

that had me

trying my hand

well...feet

at river dancing

like no one was watching

images of Ireland

and Celtic crosses

seemed to surround

me

wearing mine

right along with

the green

and as it goes

the mind wanders

with a prayer in your heart

that touches the lips

and you find yourself standing

at the spot of another cross

that somehow bid you to 

come.

Stirrings 

that pull at you

draw you to them

and you just know

you must

listen.

roots

I have a saying

words of wisdom

if you will

that I claim ownership of

an observation from

living

life

You cannot travel far from the

way you were 

raised

Oh

I know there are times

you  may want to break free of it

but 

in the end

somehow

you always 

return 

home.

Even where food is concerned.

Comfort foods.

The stuff that mom always

made

closely linked to one's

nationality

As a kid 

whenever I was asked this question

a sense of pride bubbled

as I recited

English, Irish, German, and Scottish.

And today

the Irish is coming out in me

along with green beer

and a bit of a brogue

my taste buds turn to

Jiggs dinners

Reuben sandwiches

and a pot of Irish Stew

with

potato biscuits

browning nicely

like the pot o' gold

at the end

of the rainbow

a special dish like this

is deserving of

a fancy

bowl

I can look at that bowl

and feel a wee bit of

departure from my roots

for

rather than beef there is

seitan and beans

a plant-based stew

made hearty and flavorful with

a good stout beer

which poured a plenty

in the days of ol'

back at the homestead

served alongside

corn on the cob?

that I couldn't pass up

when I spotted it at Costco

and 

for some strange reason

sounded like the perfect

accompaniment

to the stew

and then it hit me

the story of my birth

a hot August day

a day

that my mom

had her mom

making food to satisfy an

odd and unusual

craving 

Can you guess what it was?

Stew with Corn on the Cob

and no

I am not making this up!

The sad ending to this little tale...

mom went into labor

and was rushed to

the hospital

without

enjoying the wondrous meal

prepared for her.

But ah...

the story remains

it grows and transforms

and makes one wonder...

did the craving come from the 

mother

or the

babe?

This is the stuff

Irish folktale...

legends

are made of.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Now

go make some

mom food.

love ya

 mamai!

(that's Gaelic for mommy)

xo

fast week

It felt like I went to bed 

Sunday night

and woke up

Saturday morning.

That kinda fast.

It all started when I bumped

into my brother

Tim

at the local grocery

and he began talking about 

the Snowy Owls

let me back up a bit to explain

that bird watching

is his newest passion

and he can't help himself

but every conversation

comes back to birds

I don't care if you're talking about

the fact that he has never

tried the

Starbucks at Kroger

gasp!

somehow it will remind him

of the Colombian cockatoo

or whatever...

it is so much fun to watch

and learn.
So
 when he invited
or did I
insinuate myself?
whatever!
to go on a hunt for
the Snowy Owl
before
they head north
I was all in
with James of course
so we could call it a field trip!

we saw the 

Horned Larks

American Kestrels

Red Tailed Hawks

Turkey Vultures

a critter or two

and there he is

the Snowy Owl

if you click on the pic

it will enlarge the image

good thing Tim was there

because I would have driven right on by

without noticing

it's like he has a

birdey (like Spidey) sense or something

and in a snap of his camera

he captured the moment

for James and myself

known as

a life bird

marking the first time

we viewed a Snowy Owl in his

natural habitat

so very cool

Thank you Tim for sharing

your passion

and those amazing pictures.

Then we got slammed

like the rest of the 

Midwest

by 

not just any snowstorm

but

I can't remember its name

maybe

Vulcan

or something

very scary like that!

sends shivers

up and down the spine.

But wait!

I skipped right over

field trip number 2

The Walk in the Garden

before 

Vulcan hit.

the sun was shining

people were out and about

in short sleeves no less!

beauty at 

every turn

there was a small sailboat race

planned

and I was able to capture

the colors of the sails

as they

danced on the breeze

then turning my camera

to sepia

I focused

my lens on the images

around me

yes

all the beautiful images...

he was a given

she was quite 

majestic

as well.

Ah yes

 it was a resplendent day

yet these are but mere photos

of the originals

as we walked

the Louvre's

Tuileries Garden

right here

in Toledo, Ohio

they allowed me to take 

these sans flash

Once I get started

it's hard to

reel me back in

which is why

Joe and James

were so very happy that

the museum

was about to close

I did manage a quick picture of

the Cloister

thanks to Sue and Mom

for joining us

next time 

we will make a full day of it

with lunch at 

The Beirut

and we will leave those brats

(I think its terrible when adults speak

of their kids in such a manner!)

at home!

Then scary storm Vulture hit

with a Level 3 shutdown

and cancellations of just about

everything

except

television watching!

Thank God!

Oh yeah,

throw in work

and a little girl turning 5

and

sister Mary coming into town...

like a whirlwind

I tell

ya.

Feeling a little breathless

as I sip my morning brew

and

peruse Isa'a cookbook

for my next

exotic food journey

from 

Milan to Minsk

(I know, I'm weird)

Leaving me dizzy

but then again,

depending on who you ask

that's the 

way I roll.

Enjoy your weekend

cuz i'm gonna!

:)