a fabulous day, lots of food...and sprouts!

don't ya love it when you have a fantastic day? today was one of those kind of days and i'll explain why later!

saturday night and sunday we had a bit of a storm. it was beautiful when it stopped. but for the next couple of days it was frigidly cold - brrrrr!

it's times like those that you want comfort food - like a big bowl of homemade miso, baby bock choi and mushrooms with a big piece of kimchi.

that'll sure warm you up for breakfast! for lunch we had grilled shrimp, an avocado and cucumber salad with sprouts and some corn sprouts.

the corn sprouts are in the middle of the plate and they taste very sweet - i love them! jambaloney finds them a little strange. which leads me to my next point....did you know that you can sprout corn kernels??? yes you can! and if you have access to organic corn - stock up on it! if you can grow your own corn, grow a ton and save some kernels for seed for the following year. but save as many kernels as you can for sprouts. sprouts are very nutritious and i will talk about sprouts in more detail in a bit.

back to homey, comfort food when it is freezing outside. nothing says comfort to us than steak fajitas with all of the fixings! like homemade salsa, grilled onions and peppers, and avocado - yummeh!

the second day of the big freeze started with my all-time favourite comfort food!

i call it "giblet soup" because i normally make it with the giblets from a turkey or chicken. "giblets" are the heart, kidney and liver of the animal. this time tho, i used some beef liver cut into tiny pieces, with thin slices of celery and homemade broth - deevine!

a nice delicious dinner? roasted veg - one of our favourite vegetarian meals!

now for a big let down! jambaloney was in to work on site last tuesday and you know what tuesday means right? THE FISH GUY!!!! the fish guy had fresh-caught swordfish steaks and as neither of us have ever had swordfish....jam got us some. we could hardly wait to try it. it cooked up beautifully in just some butter, salt and pepper.

my verdict? BLECK! it tasted like fake-pressed chicken stuff! the fish is very dense and i tend to like my fish flakey. jambaloney didn't mind it, he thought it was good but it is not something we will stock up on or ever buy again - the stuff is really expensive!

anyway - back to why today was a fantastic day! it was because after our couple of days of deep-freeze, we had 3 days of rain, fog and mist. you know what rain, fog and mist do, don't you? rain, fog and mist does this:

woohoo! they make snow go away! check out the front yard this morning:

almost no snow! and the long range forecast looks like we won't be getting any anytime soon!

for this morning's breakfast we had a little celebration! we made vietnamese rice paper rolls - deelish!

rice paper wraps with vermicelli, carrot, cucumber, lettuce, a ton of cilantro and shrimp. with fresh-made dipping sauce - we deserved it! and nothing will wake you up and prepare you to enjoy a gorgeous day better than those.

we walked around the yard and had dips in the hottub. jambaloney checked the generator and atv and did some odd work around the yard. i prepared shish-kebab skewars for our supper this eve - jam will be grilling up a steak for him and lamb chops for me.

now for some prepping information that no one ever seems to talk about - saving seeds for sprouts!do you know how many radish seeds you can get from one radish plant? bazillions. save some of those seeds for next years planting but use the rest throughout the year for sprouts - they are delicious!

here is some very interesting info about sprouted seeds:

"Seeds and grains contain a wonderful store of nutrients and are an excellent source of enzymes. Nature has protected the enzymes in dry seeds, nuts, grains and legumes by placing enzyme inhibitors in them. Enzyme inhibitors prevent the enzymes from being activated until the seed is germinated. Unfortunately this also prevents us from receiving the benefit of the plant enzymes to aid us in the digestion of the seeds. Germination neutralizes the inhibitors and releases the enzymes. Many people are sensitive to these inhibitors and display allergic reactions such as headaches. Some have difficulty digesting the seeds and nuts, grains or legumes and suffer indigestion. These digestive problems can be prevented by soaking the dry seed and beginning the germination process. Sprouting makes the vital enzymes fully available for our body's use and eliminates the possibility of allergic reactions to the enzyme inhibitors.

Many seeds also contain phytic acid which significantly reduces the absorption of calcium, iron, zinc and other minerals into the blood stream causing loss of important minerals. When the seeds are sprouted, such losses become insignificant. Several other important functions are served in sprouting. The nutritional value is greatly enhanced, even quadrupled in many cases. In addition, starches and proteins are converted into simple sugars and amino acids which are much more easily absorbed and utilized by the body. In the case of nuts and seeds, the fat content is reduced by as much as 30-40% as it is consumed or energy in growing the sprout or converted into fatty acids.

The high concentration of vitamins, minerals and amino acids (proteins), RNA and DNA in sprouted foods have a regenerative effect on the human body. This concentrated combination of nutrients is available only in the live cell food."(http://www.homeopathyone.com/live_sprouted_foods.htm)

a plant that is full of millions of seeds and is normally grown for ornamental purposes is amaranth. you can plant a small pot of amaranth and still get a bazillion seeds for sprouting!

and you know the seeds that you saved 3 years ago and are not sure that are still viable to plant? sprout them!

many people and websites much smarter than me say that seeds only have an X viable planting life. that may be true...but one thing i know from experience is that if you store your seeds in a cool, dark place under proper conditions - they'll sprout many years later. and the point that i am trying to make is DO NOT THROW AWAY SEEDS. at the very least, in 5-10 years you may be able to get them to sprout. and sprouts are highly nutritious and should play a very large role in your diet whether the S has hit the fan or not.

getting off the sprout soap-box now and going for a walk around the yard with jambaloney and the cats and i don't even have to try to avoid the snow - it's almost all gone - wahooey!