We are in the thick of summer. Here in Dallas, the temperature is in the hundreds. It’s warm, and the attitude is a more laid back. In the heart of lazy summer, is there a way to be creatively productive while you enjoy a laid back attitude? Try these four strategies. Continue reading What have you been doing on lazy summer days?→
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
Many of us catch spring fever in March. It’s a time when winter begins to appear in your rear view mirror. Some days are warm, some days are cold. It’s stormy and sunny all in one month. This is the time of year when you can really get geared up for gardening.
Here are 6 simple steps to get you geared up for gardening this year.
Learn.
Find a local garden show to get connected with gardening experts in the area. I attended the Arkansas Garden Show with my mom last weekend. It was a great education in all things gardening. There were horticulturists, fermentation experts, backyard chicken growers, and even honeybee enthusiasts! If you can’t find a local garden show, check out your local cooperative extension to get tips.
Plan.
Check out the farmer’s almanac to predict the last frost. Instructions on when to plant in your garden is related to the last frost in your area. For example, I plan to plant cucumbers 1-2 weeks before last frost (about now where I live in north Texas). And, start a pinterest board to give you gardening ideas. From a simple herb garden on your windowsill to a full-out pollinator garden, the possibilities are endless.
Compost.
The key to a successful garden is healthy, rich soil. An effective way to get healthy soil is to compost. Compost is organic matter that you can use to fertilize the garden (without chemical fertilizer). We throw away our fruit and veggie scraps (that don’t go to the chickens) on our countertop compost tin, and once it gets full we take it to a larger compost bin that stays on our back patio.
Till.
My veggie garden is still pretty young, and therefore I am adding organic garden soil to it each season. It’s important to till the garden to introduce oxygen into the soil. Adding garden soil and compost to the ground will add nutrients as well. Our chickens are natural tillers (and provide manure as well). They have been scratching and pecking in our dormant veggie garden all winter, which has been enriching our soil.
Shop.
I recommend finding a local nursery that specializes in organic veggies and local plants (shout out to North Haven Gardens in Dallas). Local nurseries can give you advice for gardening in your area.
Seed.
I am going to try my hand at planting seeds this year. It’s less expensive, and I went to a workshop at the garden show about how to plant seeds without a greenhouse… I’m excited to give it a try.
How do you get geared up for gardening season? Let me know in the comments!
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
For some of you, I know that’s a dreaded question – especially in the middle of the week. And, that’s totally understandable! Sometimes you simply find yourself in a lets-just-order-takeout rut. When you come home after a long day, the last thing you want to do is cook!
Never fear. You can make life easier by doing a little prep on the weekends to figure out a couple of healthy meals that will give you a delicious and well-planned answer throughout the week to the question: what’s for dinner?
Here are five steps to help you answer the question: What’s for dinner
1. Make sure you have some basic ingredients on hand for dinner.
Check out my post about pantry essentials to help you cook more at home. Keep those items stocked in your kitchen so that weekdays are spent cooking rather than shopping (followed by cooking).
2. Choose two “compass” ingredients for dinner.
These two ingredients you will use to set the direction for your meal planning. There are a couple of ways to decide on your compass ingredients:
• Take a quick look at your pantry, fridge, and freezer. Which ingredients would you like to incorporate into your meals this week? For example, this week I found a couple of cans of garbanzo beans that became one of my two compass ingredients.
•If you head to the grocery store, try to find what’s on sale. For example, chicken thighs were on sale this week, so they became my second compass ingredient.
3. Choose two different dinner recipes that will stem from your compass ingredients.
You can do this a number of ways:
•Look ahead to your schedule for the week and figure out if there’s an evening that gives you 30-40 minutes to cook. If you have that time, find a recipe with your compass ingredient that takes that time. If you DON’T have the time, choose a slow cooker recipe to have ready when you walk in the door instead. For example, I made chicken thighs in the slow cooker for my mid-week meal this week.
• Identify other ingredients you might have on hand that could complement your compass ingredients. Do a web search for both of those ingredients. For example, I had extra carrots on hand as well as garbanzo beans. So, I found a recipe for garbanzo beans and greens that included both of those ingredients.
4. Next, determine how you will use the dinner leftovers from each recipe.
If you can transform one meal into another with minimal effort, you can get two meals out of one original recipe! For example, I served the chickpea recipe with farro one night, and then the chickpea recipe with whole grain tortillas the next night. AND for my chicken thighs, I served chicken with roasted zucchini on the side one night, and then the next night I served it with a green salad.
5. Pick one night to take it easy at dinner.
Now that you have four meals planned, take it easy for your fifth meal. You can keep it simple by serving whole grain pasta with jarred sauce (make it low sodium and no sugar), cooking breakfast for dinner, making sandwiches, or simply warming up a bulk meal you have in your freezer.
How do you answer the question: What’s for dinner? Let me know in the comments!
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
A productive morning begins with a purposeful evening. When I take the time to gear up for the morning, this helps me wind down for the night. Here are 10 evening tips you can use for successful morning – each take less than 15 minutes to do! You can even incorporate these tips into your evening routine.
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
This week, I wanted to give you a little glimpse into my weekday lunch preparation. Hopefully some of the creative shortcuts can be helpful for you – and this post will show you how to make weekday lunch preparation easy.
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
I am always amazed at the fun that can be had cooking a holiday meal with family. And, it is even more fun (and easier) if you prepare the night before. Here are six steps you can take the night before a holiday to make cooking the next day a breeze: Continue reading How to make holiday meals easier→
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
This Saturday (around lunchtime), I desperately needed a fridge cleanup. We had veggies in the refrigerator that I knew would not last the entire week, and we also had bits of leftovers from dinners this last week. For example, my spouse and I had grilled up some chicken and eggplant earlier in the week, but there simply wasn’t much left for us to split.
I thought—you know what? I’ll throw some Mediterranean veggies in with these two base ingredients. The resulting salad not only ended up being delicious, but these leftovers transformed into two pretty satisfying salads for a Saturday lunch.
Here’s what I did. I looked through the fridge. We had a little bit of salad mix, a cucumber, tomatoes, leftover grilled chicken (like a ¾ of a breast), and some grilled eggplant. I also found some Kalamata olives, almond slivers, basil, raisins, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar in my pantry. These ingredients make a really nice, mayo-free chicken salad!
A quick note: this became a “chicken” salad, but really the stars of the salad were the veggies. Their flavors really brought out the Mediterranean feel of the dish. You don’t need that much meat to enjoy lunch—a little can go a long way if you add flavorful veggies.
First, I took the sliced almonds and started slowly roasting them in my toaster oven at 250 degrees.
While the almonds were toasting, I chopped up the veggies and chicken into bite-sized pieces. This made the salad more interesting and fun when each bite has a little bit of a different flavor. Once the veggies were chopped, I turned off the toaster oven (my almonds were a light golden brown).
Then, I whisked together my simple dressing ingredients: olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
I moved all of the chopped ingredients in a mixing bowl and gently mixed with a big wooden spoon. Then, I added the dressing to the mixture. I topped it with those crunchy, toasted almond slivers and chopped basil.
Then, I put the little bit of salad greens I had left in the fridge to the bottom of a salad bowl. I topped the greens with the veggies (tossed in dressing) and added this mixture to it to some salad mix. Here’s what it ended up looking like:
Cleanup (also very important on a busy Saturday) was minimal. I just sprayed the area with a homemade green cleaner, and loaded the rest of the dishes in the dishwasher. And, I got a two-fer out of this salad—it helped me clean out the fridge without having to throw food away!
Here’s the final recipe:
Ingredients:
For the salad: ¼ cup Kalamata olives
½ cup grilled eggplant, chopped into ½ inch chunks
1 cup chopped chicken
1 medium cucumber, sliced into quarters
¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted at 250 degrees for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown
1 tablespoon basil, chopped
¼ cup raisins
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
For the dressing: ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
Directions:
Mix all salad ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the balsamic vinegar and olive oil together. Add the dressing to the medium mixing bowl.
In a salad bowl, add greens. Top greens with the chicken salad mixture and enjoy!
Have you ever made the best of a fridge cleanup? Let me know by commenting below! And, try this salad and let me know what you think!
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
A couple of weeks go, I felt totally frustrated. Here it was Thursday morning, and I had spent half the week sleeping late and not getting the exercise and reflection time I needed.
The postings on this site are my own (unless otherwise stated) and don't necessarily represent any other organization's positions, strategies or opinions. Thanks!
Celebrating creative productivity, healthy living, and purposeful growth
at 250 degrees.
