Pumpkin salad

I made it again. Bret can't get enough of it.
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roasted pumpkin salad

it's another recipe post!  a few months ago i was reading a blog where a woman was talking about her family's new food addiction.  i can't remember exactly what her kids were inhaling, but she said it was inspired by a recipe she found on 101cookbooks.  it involved a pumpkin and since i had two in storage i was pretty determined to try my hand at it.  finally, yesterday, i did.  while searching for the blog i had read, i instead came across the recipe on 101 cookbooks, so i did that one.

sorry i don't have pictures, but i do have a link to the website where i got the recipe and that has pictures. and hers are pretty!  much prettier than how my dish turned out, but according to bret, taste is what matters anyway, and this was a winner.  he nearly ate the whole bowlful by himself!

By the way, what I'm posting here is my version of the recipe.  Feel free to follow the original.

Roasted Pumpkin Salad

3 cups of diced and peeled pumpkin (obtained from Mother's garden last fall)
2 large onions cut into large chunks (basically quartered)
olive oil and salt - no measurement - enough to coat the pumpkin and onions.

Toss the pumpkin and onion in oil and salt and then bake on a lined cookie sheet for around 50 minutes at 375.  Every now and then try to stir it up a bit so they can bake on new sides.  The goal is to have them caramelize a bit.

While that is baking, make two cups of brown rice.

While rice is cooking, blend the following in a food processor to make the dressing:

1/3 cup sunflower seeds
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons warm water
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped

When everything is done, mix them all together and enjoy!

Guess where I went today

Last free day of the season. Bonded with nieces and nephew. Good times!
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In other news

I went short! I think it's been 10 years. My how time flies. So far I love how it is out of the way. Wonderful!
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Finally it is finished!

I started this afghan over Easter break on a trip to California visiting my sister's family. My niece, who is an expert crocheter, showed me how. I made a goal to have it finished by Christmas, but you know how things go. Bret went with me on the trip and on the drive home we read a book about finding the mate of your life. Well, it was productive and we finally got married, thus delaying my afghan work. When I got back to it I didn't have enough yarn. You can't tell, but it has two different whites. I'd like to point out that this is only the second afghan I've ever made and both wound up being made with two yarns that are slightly a shade off. You would think I would learn my lesson. Always buy way more than I think is necessary. At least I figure this way I won't be afraid to use them. Mother always says a mistake or two shows it is hand made.
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Guess where I am

Yep I'm at monster jam. We got free tickets through the tightwadinutah blog. Bret refused to join me so it's a girl night. So far it's pretty fun. Right now someone named bobo is telling us how much horse power (1600 hp) his truck has. Thankfully some neighbors had extra earplugs to share. I'd be miserable without them. Take note - when you get free tickets to monster jam remember to bring ear plugs!
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making dinner

do any of you struggle to have just the right ingredients on hand for the recipes you want to make?  i plan a menu, i shop accordingly, and yet i still find myself, time after time, missing an ingredient when it is time to make dinner.  take tonight for example.  i've wanted to try this thai beef noodle recipe for a while.  it called for sprouts, cucumber, and cilantro.  not to mention noodles, beef, and flavorings.  anyway, i couldn't find sprouts for sale in the stores i normally go to so i finally decided to grow my own.  i bought cucumbers and cilantro.  well, by the time the sprouts grew enough to make me give up on having them be long tall sprouts like i've seen at salad bars, i decided i needed to make the dish.  i dove into the crisper only to discover the cucumber was slimy.  yep.  well, by this time the beef was thawed and i was determined to make it.  i decided i could use celery and carrots in their place - after all, it's basically a noodle stir fry type dish - all vegetables are good.  as i got making it i discovered it also called for fresh ginger.  i had some on hand at the time i first decided to make this recipe, but apparently somewhere in between it went bad and i threw it out.  so guess what i used instead?  pickled ginger - like the kind you eat with sushi.  i figure it's just a bit more flavorful, and being pink won't matter much since there are carrot shavings in there too.  it all blends.  and truth be told, it's rather delicious.  i just hate thinking of the fresh produce i wasted.  i really need to be better organized with my menu planning i think.

beauty

in my last post i said i was going to floss my teeth and clean the bathroom.  but then i remembered i had a good experience last week that bret said i should blog.  he's not big on blogging, so if he suggests it i figure i better.

last wednesday i got home from grocery shopping feeling totally defeated.  my bad mood continued on through the night.  i think i'd also been listening to too much news about the egyptian revolution and that added to my depression.  i figured after a good night's sleep i'd feel better, but the next morning i still felt grumpy and sad.  since it was bret's day off we were scheduled to go to the temple.  i knew that would do me some wonders, but i wasn't feeling very motivated.  luckily with bret's motivation we headed down town.  while in the session all was fine, i felt fine, i wasn't sad, but i wasn't exactly feeling great either.  about half way through the session, after changing rooms, the woman who sat next to me turned to me and said, "you are just beautiful, absolutely gorgeous."  or some such excessive compliment.  it really made me smile.  in fact, it made me feel so good i couldn't help but notice every other person in the room looked beautiful to me.  i mean seriously - they were all beautiful.  after that, the rest of the day was great.  there was beauty all around me.  it's amazing how much difference a random compliment can make.  if anything it was a lesson to me on how important it is to tell people how beautiful they are.  compliments are miraculous.  i'm still feeling good from it!

gardening

i planned my garden last week. planning is the easy part. luckily i get to put off the real work for another couple months. i decided to write a blog post about it for my other blog - tightwadinutah.

by the way, i still haven't flossed today.  maybe i should do it right now!  then i'll clean the bathroom.

flossing

i just want to report that i flossed today. went to the dentist earlier this week. again i was painfully reminded of why i should floss. i brush with no trouble why is it so hard to also floss? i figure if i've learned to brush twice daily then i can learn to floss once a day. right? and yet i forget like the wind. any tips on how i can make it more of a habit? i have the floss sitting right next to my toothbrush so i can see it and yet i've managed to see it - much like the dust in the house.

if you haven't flossed today - maybe you should. it only takes a minute. now to exercise. something else i've managed to learn to do despite many many many years of not wanting to.