Best Vegetarian Chili EVER

Over the weekend I decided to make some chili.  I wandered around the farmer's market just picking up random fresh items to throw into it - and really, just about everything sounds good in chili!

I don't mean to brag, but I make probably the best freakin' vegetarian chili EVER.  I get so bored with the store-bought kind, and it seems as though "vegetarian" usually just means "tons of beans".  Kind of like the way that "vegetarian" on your office's pizza day means "cheese only".

What the heck, man?  I'm vegetarian not just because I don't eat meat, but because I LOVE VEGETABLES!!

So here's my recipe for a delicious vegetarian chili full of veggie-love.  It has a little kick and a unique (but addictive) flavor!

Beth's Best Vegetarian Chili EVER
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40-60 minutes
Total time: About 1 hour 15 minutes
Makes about 6-8 servings
Gluten-free* / Vegan

- 1 sweet potato (OR 3-4 carrots), peeled & chopped
- 4 small to medium-sized peppers (any kind), chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 10 mushrooms, sliced
- 1 can vegetarian baked beans
- 1 can black beans (drained, but not rinsed)
- 2 cups veggie broth (or water)
- 1 tbsp curry paste (curry powder will work fine)
- 1 can corn (or 2 cobs of corn, steamed and cut off the ears) 
- 1 cup soyrizo (vegetarian chorizo), (*you can substitute vegetarian ground beef, or vegetarian sausage - but please keep in mind these may NOT be gluten-free)
- 1 can tomato paste (small) 
- 2 large tomatoes, diced (OR 1 large can diced tomatoes, not drained)
- 1/2 cup brown rice
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- salt & pepper
- olive oil
- shredded cheddar cheese (for garnish), optional (a dollop of cottage cheese is awesome on top too)

In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the sweet potatoes (or carrots), and onions, and cook until the onions become soft.  Add the peppers and garlic, stir well, and cook another minute.  Add the mushrooms, stir well.  Carefully add the remaining ingredients.  Cover and simmer for 40-60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so (you may need to add a little more liquid).  Serve hot!

I like to put them in containers in the freezer, and store them for up to a month!

Leftover Chili Dinner & My Favorite Mug

I made a TON of chili a few weeks ago.  I had a bunch of ingredients that were about to go bad (beans, tomatoes, etc.), and I realized - I can throw together a batch of "whatever I've got in the fridge chili!"  And it was pretty awesome.

I put half of it in the freezer, and I've been thawing it out and having it periodically for the past month or so.  It's SOOO GOOD.

I wish I could remember how I made it, but I can't.

I CAN however remember how I ate some of the leftovers!
I didn't have enough to make 2 whole bowls (I wanted to make it last for 2 more dinners), and I wanted to get my greens in there too.  So I decided to heat up my leftover chili, and dump it over a bed of arugula and warm brown rice.

But it was missing something.  Something creamy and delicious to top it off just right.

A fried egg!  YES!

Oh man, this is my new favorite dinner.  WAY yummy, and surprisingly healthy to boot!  You could make this with any leftover chunky chili, soup or sauce.  So easy!

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On another note, how's this for a great way to start your morning?

It's by far my favorite mug 'cause it cracks me up every time.
Wanna buy one for yourself?  Click here!*

*Note: You may need to change the Content Filter to see all the products listed (including the Asshat mug). There’s a little tabby thing on the left. Just change the filer from SAFE to OFF (you'll need to enter your birthdate). :)  You're welcome!

Sunshine Project!

Last night I attended a meeting at a beautiful little house to talk about getting good food to people in Denver who don't have access to it.

I knew this was gonna be right up my alley.

It was only a small group of people, but we talked about the need for affordable, organic, fresh & unprocessed foods to be accessible to EVERYONE - especially certain "food deserts" in Denver (where there are no grocery stores nearby, no access to any foods except fast "foods").

It was a wonderful meeting, and I love how excited everyone is about this food program.  It started as a co-op, but they're now a full non-profit.  They need help with gardening, filling orders, reaching out to the community, and much more.  I am SO EXCITED.

This is just a sample of some of the amazing foods they sent me home with from their garden!

I can't wait to try them all!  :D

Click here to read a little more about the project (it's from last year, but still has good info).  I'm so excited to be a part of this program, and to be helping people who share the same passion that I do.  Getting good, local, organic, HEALTHY foods to EVERYONE.

It's time to change the world!

Brunch with the ladies!

Today my mom, little sister and I went to Mona's for some brunch!

It was so yummy - I got the French eggs Benedict (it had brie cheese on it, and came on a croissant - YUM!), and my mom and I split a huge blueberry pancake.  The coffee wasn't too shabby either!

It's my last weekend before I start my new job, and a lovely brunch with the family was a great way to do it.  I'm very excited to start my new position - and I gotta say, it's actually been nice to have some time off (even though it was so unexpected).  I've been getting caught up on school paper stuff, getting my apartment clean, catching up with friends, getting doctor's appointments done, etc.  It's actually been pretty busy, but good.

Funny how things turn out, huh?  And I really think this was the best thing for me - it's helping me move toward a new career and towards what I truly want to do, which is help people heal with nutrition.  And that makes me feel good!!

Hope you all are enjoying this lovely weekend so far!

Apricot Toast & Tea

The Farmer's Market is back in full-swing again!  
Just walking around you can see all of the beautiful things that are in season right now... and at the moment, apricots are IN! 

I just love apricots.  They have such a beautiful mild flavor, with a gentle complexity.  

I bought some fresh baked bread as well, and some organic salted butter.  And of course some P&G Tips black tea. 

So I enjoyed a lovely, simple breakfast - toast with butter, topped with sliced fresh apricot and a drizzle of local honey.  

And it was quite the heavenly way to start the day. 

Pie time!

Lately I've been helping out in the bakery with some pie making!  And I've been loving it.  :)

We've been making full-sized pies, hand pies, rolling out dough, making the filling - all those goodies!  It can get repetitive sometimes (try making 65 blueberry hand pies sometime!), but I really have been having a great time.  And it helps that I have a super rad teacher guiding me along!  Leanne is awesome, and she makes the most delicious pies ever.

PLUS it's helped me get over my fear of making pie dough - definitely the most difficult part to get right when it comes to pies.  It's such a science, but I feel a lot more confident now that I've been forced to work on it myself!

I'll be going back to my regular job at the storefront starting Sunday, but I hope to be back there again soon.  I really liked the change of pace, and working with food directly.

Anyway, it has inspired me to start making my own pies at home!  Kinda funny that I'd do something all day at work - and still want to do it when I clock out.  Ha!  Weird how that happens, huh? I must like what I'm doing or something. :)

All Images via Pinterest.  

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm going to be at the parent's house for a few days, but before I left I wanted to be sure to wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!! 

Do you want to know what I'm thankful for?  
Well, I'll tell ya! 
I'm thankful for... 

- beautiful snowy mornings
- giggling babies
- wagging doggie tails
- cupcakes
- family 
- friends
- love
- sympathy
- really good hugs
- comfortable shoes
- a warm bed
- sunshine
- rain
- juicy apples
- home

....and oh so much more.  I'm so grateful to have so many wonderful people in my life, and to be just who I am.  My heart is so filled with love & happiness right now! :)

Hope you all have a wonderful & safe day!  
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!  

Images found via Pinterest or We Heart It. 

Tom's Urban 24 - a visit to the new downtown diner!

The other day I met up with a few friends from my old job for an early happy hour at the brand-spankin'-new Tom's Urban 24-hour Diner on the corner of 15th & Larimer in downtown Denver.

Look at these lovely ladies!

They had some pretty awesome stuff on the menu, and some crazy drink cocktails that we absolutely had to try!  My favorite was the "WTF;)" - I can't remember all of the ingredients, but it contained whiskey, Coors light, red wine, orange juice, etc.  Sounds weird, but MAN it was good!

Susan got herself a "Coffee & Donut" - maple bacon doughnut, a shot of doughnut vodka, espresso, and espresso liquor.  Wowza.

And I think these may have been probably the most delicious deviled eggs I've ever had.  Truffled Deviled Eggs?  Yes, please!!

This one was my drink #2 - I can't remember the name, but it was champange with rose water syrup and some other yummy goodies in there too.  OH so good!!

How about that happy girlie!  And that pizza was friggin' amazing - cheese, arugula, mushrooms - YUM!  SO good.

Anyway, you guys should definitely check this place out if you have a chance.  It really is open 24-hours too!  And the menu is freakin' huge.  I kinda wanted to try everything!

THANKSGIVING IS ALMOST HERE!!

Oh my gosh - only 1 more week until my favorite holiday!!  THANKSGIVING!! 

If you remember, I posted back in early September about my Thanksgiving menu.  Yep, I had it planned all the way back then.  And man, it's gonna be delish!!

Here's my full play-by-play for the big Thanksgiving Meal: 


Breakfast
Egg casserole - This I'm going to make the night before.  John and I are heading down as soon as I get off work to start prepping everything! :) 
Scones!  (sticky fingers mix) - I'm trying to keep things simple this year, so breakfast will be fast & easy! 

Appetizers
Homemade Pimento cheese dip (with rice crackers) - I'm going to make this the night before too.  It has been hard planning for my little sister (who is gluten AND lactose intolerant), but I'm doing the best I can so that she can enjoy as much as possible!  
Roasted nuts - A family favorite!  It makes the house smell SO GOOD. 

Salad 
Roasted Beet Salad with pears & almonds - I'm hoping our lovely family friend Deb will be able to make this to bring - she always does such an amazing job with the salad! 

Side Dishes
Carrot Casserole - I haven't done a carrot dish in a while, and I think this one will be a nice change! 
Mushroom Wellington cups - This is a new one for me, and may be a bit of a challenge.  I'm hoping it will be a fun one though (and hopefully a hit!)
Mashed potatoes (vegan) - Another one I'm hoping to get completed the night before.  The potatoes are always the easiest ones to make milk-free for Taryn! 
Brussels sprouts with white beans & pecorino (on the side) - I'm kinda lovin' on Brussels sprouts right now.  I think this will be a fun veggie instead of green beans! 
Gravy (vegan) - hoping to get this one done the night before too - it's always a huge hit at Thanksgiving. 
“Sausage” stuffed red onions - Another new recipe!  I hope it's not too complicated... 

Entrees
Turkey (Dad / John) - I never do the Turkey - I don't even think I would know how to cook meat anymore! ha! 
Maple Glazed Tofurkey - A new recipe, but it looks pretty easy! 
AND Currant Maple Citrus Loaf - Ditto on this one, but it sounds delish.  Tofurkey's are pretty small, so we usually do two meatless-loafs instead of just 1 (so that we have plenty of leftovers!)

Desserts 
Apple “Cream” Pie – This will be from my Southern Pies cookbook - another first for me!  I can't wait to give it a try though.  I'm making a small gluten-free apple crumble for the little sis.  
Toasted Coconut pie (from work!!) - Yep, I recently found out that the bakery is going to give each employee a free pie for Thanksgiving!!  How totally rad is that??  I am so excited. 

And there you have it!  I'm so excited to have a couple of days off to spend with the fam.  I just love this time of year!  Man, if Thanksgiving snuck up on me this quickly, Christmas is going to be here even quicker! Holy moly!  

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!  :D 

All images found on either Pinterest or We Heart It. 

Soup's On!!

It snowed like crazy last night in Denver (yep, SNOWED!), and we're supposed to get even more tonight.  Crazy, huh? 

But the best part of that means, it's time for SOUP!! 

I love love love soup.  Hearty chunky soup, creamy mellow soup - it warms you through and through.  Nothing is better than coming in from a cold day and having a hot steaming cup of your favorite soup. 

I recently made a big batch of "anything goes" soup which included pretty much everything but the kitchen sink - any veggies I had in the fridge and then some!  I threw in: 
- Carrots
- Celery
- Onions
- Potatoes
- Mushrooms
- Garlic
- Broccoli 
- Asparagus
- an Apple (it was great, trust me)
- leftover black beans

And I think even a few more ingredients.  I sauteed the harder veggies in olive oil in the pot first (the carrots / celery), then tossed the rest in.  I added some veggie stock and water and let it simmer for about 45 minutes or so.  Then I removed it from the heat and used my hand blender to get everything well blended.  I seasoned it and popped 1/2 of it in the freezer.  

It was great with noodles too - oh my goodness, so hearty and yummy! 

Unfortunately that soup is all gone now (I kind of ate it all), so I'm gonna have to make some more!  Luckily Pinterest has given me some great ideas for the next batch of warm delicious awesomeness: 

Vegan Sweet Potato & Cauliflower soup.  A lovely seasonal soup with a bright orange color - yum yum!  And so simple according to the recipe!  Can't wait to try it.

A classic favorite with a sweet twist - Butternut Squash & Apple Soup!  I love love LOVE butternut squash soup, and I happen to have a butternut squash sittin' on my counter right now, waiting to be chopped!  Definitely going to try this savory / sweet soup.

I found this one on the Whole Foods website, and boy does it sound hearty and totally delish.  Hearty Minestrone Soup!  Who doesn't love a big bowl of veggies and tummy-filling noodles?  YUM!

Lasagna + Soup = LASAGNA SOUP!  Yes, you heard that right.  How could this not be a crowd favorite?  It has everything!!  Of course I would use veggie sausage, but you understand. ;) 

Also, I saw that there were plenty of potatoes and leeks at the Farmer's Market last weekend, and this weekend is the last one so I'm gonna have to load up!  (So sad!!)  But man, potato leek soup is friggin' scrumptious.  

YAY FOR SOUP!! 

Yummy Healthy Breakfast

The other day I came up with a pretty darn amazing breakfast!  When I was at the Farmer's Market over the weekend they were giving away samples of Noosa Honey Yogurt with pumpkin butter and it was DELISH. So I made my own breakfast in a similar way! 

I started with some of my homemade granola and topped that with fresh sliced plums from the market.  Then I dolloped on some Noosa honey yogurt, and a couple of spoonfuls of pumpkin butter.  Then I sprinkled everything with Chia seeds.  

It was DELICIOUS, nutritious, and sweet - you should give it a try as well!  Use any kind of fruit you want, and even store bought granola.  It's a great way to start your day! 

Thanksgiving Recipe Ideas (yes, already!!)

I'm feeling much better today about the new-job stuff, especially with some reassuring words from friends (you know who you are)! :)  

As you probably know, I LOVE Fall, and Thanksgiving is pretty much my most favoritest holiday ever.  And since it's September 7th, and Thanksgiving is only about 2 1/2 months away, I HAD to get started with my menu ideas!  

Yeah, I'm a little kooky.  

But today it's only supposed to get up to the mid-70's here in Denver, and that fall feeling is in the air.   And I'm absolutely adoring it!

So without further ado, here is the menu I've been working on over the past week or so... 
 

THANKSGIVING 2012

Breakfast

Egg casserole (make the night before!)

Scones!  (sticky fingers mix? I'm gonna keep this simple so that I don't go too crazy)

Appetizers

Homemade Pimento cheese dip (with rice crackers)

Roasted nuts

Salad

Roasted Beet Salad with pears & almonds

Side Dishes

Carrot Casserole (from “At My Grandmother’s Knee” cookbook)

Mushroom Wellington cups

Mashed potatoes (vegan)

Brussels sprouts with white beans & pecorino (on the side for Taryn)

Gravy (vegan)

Fake sausage stuffed red onions

Entrees

Turkey (Dad / John will have to make it!)

Maple Glazed Tofurkey 

AND Currant Maple Citrus Loaf 

(you can find these through my Pinterest page "Yummy Recipes!") 

Desserts

Apple Cream Pie

Chocolate Pecan Pie

OR Butterscotch Pie

(2 out of the 3!) - all of them from the "Southern Pies" cookbook

 

Whaddaya think!?  :) 
I'm so excited to try out some new recipes this year - I think the mushroom wellington cups are going to be absolutely amazing, and I'm actually excited to try the currant maple citrus loaf for a change (instead of just making 2 tofurkeys)!  

Hmmm....maybe I'll try out a few of these recipes ahead of time.  Just for the hell of it!  Yum yum!! 

Over the Weekend (and Potato Broccoli Cheddar Soup!!)

I had a wonderful weekend - Saturday I helped my friend with shooting a short little action movie for a film competition (really, I just held reflectors and stuff like that), which was a lot of fun!  Then I went to a friend's birthday party that night.

Sunday morning was lovely - I went to the Farmer's Market and got all kinds of wonderful goodies!!  I've started making good use of my juicer again, so I got a lot of beautiful fruits & veggies.

That was $35 well spent (yes, ALL of this gorgeous stuff was only $35 - who says you can't be healthy AND cheap!?).

After that I met up with my mom, my sister, and Deb for brunch!  The brunch place wasn't great but we still had fun hanging out. 

We spent the rest of the day shopping (I did end up spending a little money, but actually returned most of it... I felt so guilty!), and it was all-in-all a wonderful day!

That night I watched movies and hung out with Fudgie.  He was very relaxed...

My mom gave me a hand blender to try out - I guess dad bought one too many appliances again - haha!  I decided to give it a try and make some soup - I've had a bunch of red potatoes that I needed to use.  It turned out SO YUMMY!!!

Potato Broccoli & Cheddar Soup

This will serve about 5-6 people, probably with some left over!

Took me about 20 minutes of prep, and about 1 hour total cooking time. 

- 5-6 medium red potatoes (peeled, diced)

- 1 small yellow onion (diced)

- 2-3 cloves of garlic (minced)

- 1 head of broccoli (chopped)

- 1 cup white beans (optional - I just had some in the fridge, so I figured I'd use them!)

- 1 stick of unsalted butter

- 1 to 1 1/2 cups of half & half (or soymilk / almond milk)

- 2-3 cups of vegetable broth

- 6-8 oz of cheddar cheese (cubed)

- seasonings (salt & pepper) to taste

- hot sauce (optional)

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat.  Add the garlic and onion, and sautee until the onions start to become translucent. 

Add the diced potatoes and the vegetable broth - enough to cover the potatoes, plus a little extra so that it can boil.  Cover the pot and turn the heat down to medium.  Let simmer for 20 minutes. 

Add the broccoli and the beans to the soup, and stir well.  Add in the cheese cubes and milk.  Cover and turn the heat down a little more (just under medium).  Let simmer for another 10 minutes. 

Season with salt & pepper, and if you like, blend the soup in batches.  You can leave it chunky too!  I used the hand mixer (remove the pot from heat first!), which worked great - it left some chunks, but blended some of it too.  

Serve with a dash of hot sauce on top (optional) - I made toast with butter and garlic salt, then sliced it into "dipping fingers" - it was SO GOOD!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend too! :)

Waffle House

Apparently I've been on a bad-food-eating kick lately or something - but John and I decided to go to Waffle House the morning he left for vacation.

I have been craving some old-fashioned diner-style breakfast for a while now, and this totally hit the spot.  It was greasy and fatty and delicious and awful all at the same time.  HA!

I told John that I love the sounds at a diner.  The people shouting orders, the cooks shouting the orders back, the clattering of plates and the clinking of glasses and silverware, the sizzling of the grill.  The atmosphere is such a whirlwind but I love it!  And our server was friendly and nice, and I never saw the bottom of my coffee cup. :)

We shared one heck of a meal, and nearly finished the whole thing too!  We got the "cheesy grits" (middle right of the photo above), and I laughed hysterically when the plate was dropped in front of us.  Their version of cheese grits is a slice of cheese on top of regular grits!!   I couldn't help but giggle!

I think my favorite part was the raisin toast soaked in butter though.  *Drool!!

I probably won't do diner food again for a while, but this was a nice treat.  Our meal including tip was just under $20.  Can't beat that!

Vegan Tofu Jerky - Camping Food!

I posted about my favorite campfire foods here last year, and they were a huge hit!  I know I always love hearing about new fun ideas for camping foods, and I am happy to share mine as well. :)

I did try the Tofu Jerky after I created that post, and it was DELISH!  I kind of forgot all about it until this week when I realized that A) we're going camping this weekend, and B) we had an over abundance of tofu in the fridge.  Perfect!

VEGAN TOFU JERKY
Adapted from Allrecipes.com "Tofu Jerky II" recipe. 

I just eyeballed a lot of these ingredients, since it's a marinade - it still turned out great!  I also cut WAY back on the cooking time - the original recipe wants you to cook them for 8 hours!  I don't have that kind of time.  Also, I'd rather my "jerky" be a little softer personally, but that's totally up to you. 

Prep time: 10 minutes

Marinade time: 1 hour

Cook time:  4-8 hours

Ingredients
    1 (14 ounce) package firm tofu, drained
    3 tablespoons soy sauce (this recipe is gluten-free if you use the gluten-free soy sauce!  I actually used Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids for the soy sauce instead since it tastes just like it). 
    2 teaspoons maple syrup
    1 teaspoon garlic powder
    1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
    3 tablespoons barbecue sauce
    2 teaspoons brown sugar

Directions
Wrap your tofu block gently with a kitchen towel, and set on a plate. Set another plate on top, and put a weight on top of the plate such as a can to press the water from the block of tofu while you prepare the sauce.

In a medium bowl, stir together the soy sauce, maple syrup, garlic powder, black pepper, barbeque sauce and brown sugar until smooth.

Slice tofu into 1/4 inch thick slices, and dip them in the sauce to coat (I dumped any extra marinade on top too). Place in a tightly sealed container, pop in the fridge, and let marinate for one to two hours.

Preheat the oven to the lowest temperature, around 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Line the oven rack with heavy duty aluminum foil, and place in the lowest position of the oven. Place the tofu slices on the foil. (I just put them on a cookie sheet, but maybe this would help them dry out faster). 

Bake for at least 4 hours, checking and turning over tofu slices every few hours. Tofu jerky is done when it is hard and uniformly dark in color.  (Again, mine was not terribly dark, but I like it a bit chewy!) 

 
Keep in mind, these pictures are from BEFORE these guys went in the oven, so they look quite wet & juicy.  Trust me, they will dry out significantly.  

And they are BANANAS GOOD!!  So so yummy!  I put them in a tupperware container, and I'm so bringing them with me for camping.  They'll be a great salty snack!  YUM! 

I'm totally making my famous breakfast burritos wrapped in foil for this trip, as well as a crazy yummy vodka drink I made up last night (homemade iced tea mixed with cranberry juice, vodka, and a little bit of honey).  

So excited!
 

No Carb Portabello Mushroom Pizza & the Perfect Snack

This weekend was CRAZY (really fun, but pretty darn crazy), and included all of the following: 

- Yoga on the platte river with Katy & Geneva

- Drinking a bit too much at Mile High Spirits 

- A 60-minute massage at Spavia (I finally used this - it was a Xmas gift!)

- Shopping with my momma (her treat - what a gal)

- A surprise concert at Red Rocks with Geneva (Cake with the Lumineres!)

- Loadin' up on foods at our local Farmer's Market 

- Coors Brewery Tour

- Tubing in Golden, CO with friends & Kendra from A Grimm Tale

- Catching up on episodes of "Felicity" (just started re-watching it on Netflix!)

- Not getting enough sleep...

I kind of need a weekend for my weekend!  Haha!  Pictures to come... 

But firstly, a new (and delicious) meal that John and I had last week! 

We've been trying to do the South Beach Diet the past couple of weeks.  It's been good, but I've missed fruit SO MUCH.  It's funny that I have been missing that more than bread, rice, and pasta.  Who'd have thunk it?  Anyhew, we really REALLY wanted pizza one night, so I got some Portabello mushroom caps, and we had some low-carb pizza fun.  It was so easy too! 

Portabello Mushroom Mini-Pizzas

Each cap serves 1 person - customize them any way you like! 

- Portabello mushroom caps (1 per person)

- Tomato sauce / marinara

- mozzarella cheese

- ricotta cheese (a couple of dollops, optional)

- arugula

- zucchini

- onions

- red pepper flakes (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Meanwhile build your pizzas!  Place the caps top-side down on a lightly oiled cookie sheet.  Top with sauce, the toppings of your choice (I used zucchini, arugula, onions, ricotta cheese and mozzarella), and sprinkle with red pepper flakes, or Italian seasonings. 

Bake in the oven for about 5-10 minutes, or until cheese has melted. 

Enjoy! 

These were so good - and John and I didn't even miss the bread.  We will definitely make this one again! 

Today we could finally start having fruit again, and thank GOODNESS it's still peach season.  I would have totally cried - I'm not even kidding. 

I had an amazing breakfast of whole-grain toast with part-skim ricotta cheese, sliced peaches, and a drizzle of local honey.  It was everything I hoped it could be. 

For my mid-morning grumbly tummy I had what I am deeming the Perfect Snack: 

 

An organic brown rice cake with a slice of Swiss cheese (zapped in the microwave for 15 seconds), and a locally-grown plum.  DELISH, and perfectly satisfying! 

More fun & updates to come from the weekend!  Hope yours was wonderful. :)