Happy Thanksgiving

Chocolate (tofu) pudding

Chocolate (Tofu) Pudding

Yep.  You read that right.  There’s tofu in my pudding!  Or maybe I should be saying that my pudding is tofu!  Who woulda’ guessed it?  Nobody, that’s who!  This is a very quick and easy recipe to put together, and you get such a chocolaty treat.  I loved the flavor, but my only complaint is that it isn’t as thick and creamy as it should be.  I will definitely try again though, as both Mark Bittman (in the NY Times) and Diane from Stylish Cuisine claim it to be thick, so I’m thinking maybe I just over mixed it or some such thing.  Next time I’ll cut back on the water a little bit and see how it turns out.  There will surely be a next time.  I’ve already eaten two of these and the kids haven’t even gotten home from school yet!  I’m consoling myself with the fact that it’s TOFU, people.  Good for me and all that.  {tee hee}  Plus, I just can’t believe I actually like it, but I really do.  Yum!

Recipe:  Chocolate (Tofu) Pudding

3/4 c. granulated sugar

3/4 c. water

1 lb. silken tofu

8 ounces high quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, melted

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

chocolate shaving and whipped cream to garnish

In a small pot, combine sugar with 3/4 c. water; bring to a boil and cook until sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally.  Cool slightly.

Put all ingredients, except for the garnish, into a blender and puree until completely smooth, stopping to scrape down sides as necessary.  Divide among 6 ramekins and chill for at least 30 minutes.  Garnish with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

Technical difficulties

Oh, friends.
I am mourning the loss of my little camera tonight.  If I can’t figure out what the heck is wrong with it and why it won’t focus, I’m going to seriously cry.  It’s making these horrible noises every time I try to take a picture.
How can I blog without a camera???

Jim is so not believing that I didn’t throw it up against the wall or something, cause I’ve been talking for months about buying a DSLR.  This is bad, folks.  Bad, bad, bad.  Please pass the tissues!!!

 

Just one girl

It’s Eco-Friendly Friday, but I’m still hearing a lot of “Mama, I need you” from my baby girl, which is kind of hampering my ability to form cohesive thoughts.  Instead of trying to write a blog post today, I’m sharing this wonderful video.  Why does everything sound more important coming from a child?  Hope you’ll watch and listen.

“What’s your ethical rhythm?”

IT’S ECO-FRIENDLY FRIDAY!

Check out this video.  What’s your ethical rhythm?

This is my lucky week

My new friend Lizzy, from Lizzy Goes Dutch, has given me a blog award!  I’m tickled pink, because Lizzy and I just “met” through PW’s Tasty Kitchen site not too long ago.  Thank you, Lizzy!  This award comes with some rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for the award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might now know.
5. Nominate other Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know that they have been nominated.

Hmm.  1-3 were pretty easy, but #4?  This is a hard one.  Let’s see:

• Jim and I got engaged 3 months after we met, and were married 5 months after that.  We’ve been married for 17 years.
• I am terrified of snakes.  Seriously terrified.  Can’t take my kids to the reptile house at the zoo.  Can’t watch them on tv.  Can’t look at pictures in books.  It’s bad.
• Jaws is my all-time favorite movie.  And every year at this time, I just itch to watch Halloween, but only with my sister.
• I love a good, meaningful quote or a well-written sentence in a book; and I absolutely hate being tickled.
• I collect old metal lunchboxes.  (And they collect dust, but that’s not important right now.)
• I have an aversion to feet.  Ewwww.
• I love playing Mario Kart on wii.

Now comes the fun part.  Lizzy nominated three blogs for this award, so I’m going to do the same.  I read lots of blogs ~ mostly baking ~ and have been so happily surprised at the friendliness of everybody.  I chat with folks I might never get to meet in person, and that is just amazing.  So here we go:

First, I am passing this on to my friend, The Lonely Scrapbooker. LS shares her beautiful scrapbook layouts and all the places she finds inspiration.  If you love scrapbooking, you’ll want to check out her blog.

Next, Robin Sue from Big Red Kitchen.  I always enjoy seeing what’s cookin’ in the Big Red Kitchen.  I like her sense of humor and the recipes she shares.

And last but not least, I’m giving this award to Grace at A Southern Grace.  Some pretty beautiful treats come out of Grace’s kitchen, so be prepared to drool.

Okay, I think I’ve followed all the rules and I hope these ladies are as happy to pass this on as I am.  Not that there aren’t many more blogs I love, but these three ladies are definitely “Kreativ Bloggers.”  Thanks again, Lizzy!

Blog love

I was happily surprised today reading comments and finding that I was awarded the “One Lovely Blog Award” by Heather at This is the Story of a Girl.  How cool.  Thank you, Heather!

With this award, comes a “pass it on” rule.  I need to pass this award on to 15 blogs I enjoy that are relatively new to me.  Hmmm.  Okay, here we go.

1. Tide and Thyme (dot) com – Great recipes and beautiful photos!
2. The Idea Room – Chock full of great ideas.
3. The Hungry Dog – My fellow sea salt lover!  : )
4. The Good Mood Food Blog – Love the name and the amazing photography, not to mention the recipes!
5. The Craving Chronicles – Again, great recipes and beautiful photos.
6. She’s Becoming Doughmesstic – Always giving me more great ideas.
7. Pastry Pal - Wonderful recipes by a real pro.
8. Maple N’ Cornbread – She made her own pumpkin butter!  How could I not love this blog?
9. Junglefrog Cooking – Not only great recipes and pics, but photography tips too!
10. Jam on Your Face – Mouthwatering recipes!
11. Honey and Jam – Adds the perfect finishing touch to every dish.
12. He-Eats – Carmelized peanuts.  Need I say more?
13. A Bowl of Mush – Inspires me with out-of-the-ordinary desserts.
14. 6 bittersweets – September’s Cupcake Hero winner!
15. Culinary Snapshot – Tips I hope will help me photograph my food better.

Lose the lint

IT’S ECO-FRIENDLY FRIDAY!

Don’t forget to clean the lint screen in your dryer.  All that lint that collects in there prevents the air from flowing efficiently inside your dryer.  And that makes the dryer have to work harder to dry your clothes.  Just by cleaning out that screen, you could reduce your energy use up to 30%.  But even more importantly, you could also be preventing a fire from starting in your dryer.

(info. from gaiam life)

From my yard