pretty in pink

made another batch of rose petal jam:

recipe is here

gluttony in Venice

It all started with a craving for the Abbot's Pizza "salad slice"

under all the greenery lies pizza crust slathered with a creamy dill dressing

we also got a Bianca and a Popeye's (spinach)

Abbot's claim to fame is a "Bagel" crust

Then we went on a walk...
Down the block was the Border Grill foodtruck
Severo perused the menu (he is ALWAYS doing this, even if we're stuffed. He stores the info for future use in his databank brain). The poblano quesedilla with 3 cheeses and the potato rajas taco caught his attention. I liked the sound of the green corn tamale "cone"
Guess what:

Tasty!
We attempted more walking. "Let's go down to the light."
On the corner was Lemonade, a place we've both driven by many times but had never gone to. "Let's see what's in there." (oh no) (oh yes)
From the looks of it from the street, we both thought Lemonade was a snacky sort of place that featured lemonade drinks. We were mistaken. They had a nice-looking array of salads and baked goods. We had a long debate over what to get for dessert (Severo wanted to not decide and get two - I nixed that idea). The winner we took home to our lair:

looks like soylent green!

The Lime Bar. Delicious. We added whipped cream - just because.
(Didn't notice until now that all the pix have metal surfaced backgrounds. Interesting)

Super-fiber Banana Muffins

yield: Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

3 bananas, mashed

2 eggs

1/3 cup molasses

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon grated orange rind

½ cup ground flaxseed meal

½ cup wheat germ

½ cup bran

½ cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

ginger, cardamom, clove

¼ c crystalized ginger, chopped

(1 cup chopped dates)

(1/2c chopped nuts)

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C), and prepare 12 muffin cups with papers or cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the wet

3. In a Qt measuring cup, mix together the dry

4. Gently stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture, adding the ginger (and/or nuts and dates).

5. Fill the muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

This is a combo of the Fannie Farmer banana bread and an Epicurious molassas, date + flax muffins recipe. I think coconut would be good in this too. Next time!

verdict: 

there is "something" missing... needs more ginger? the dates? more orange zest? not sure...

muffin is very moist thanks to the bananas. 

not your typical cardboard "it's good for you" bran muffin

oatmeal II

Over the past few weeks, I've been perfecting my morning oatmeal recipe
I microwave cook it, so that I don't get a saucepan dirty 

before liquids added

1/4c steel cut oats
some wheat germ or bran
1/3c slivered almonds
1/3c  dried montmorency cherries
1/4c milk
3/4c water

cook in microwave for 5 minutes in 1 minute increments --
cook 1 minute, let rest 1 minute, cook 1 minute, rest, etc
(cereal will fluff up better)

ready to eat

for a little sweet, I top it with molasses

an awesome sandwich

an awesome sandwich
Originally uploaded by anne m bray

Via Flickr:
TJ multi-grain sour dough bread
TJ pesto
feta
cucumber
avocado
radish sprouts