Meatless Monday - Garbanzo Burgers

So about a month ago I decided to start a new tradition with... MEATLESS MONDAY! There are lots of great reasons to try rely less on meat: a) healthier, b) cheaper, c) better for the environment. SO, this is last nights meatless meal, Garbanzo bean burgers and sweet potatoe fries. I adapted the recipe from the latest Everyday Rachel Ray magazine (April 2012) to serve 2 instead of 4, which actually made a bonus patty for today's lunch.

Garbanzo Bean Burgers for 2 (or 3)

1 - 15 oz can of garbanzo beans (or 1 1/2 cup rehydrated dry beans)
1/4 cup parsley leaves
1 1/2 TBS plain bread crumbs
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1-2 cloves of garlic

Puree in a food processer and form into patties

Heat up some olive oil (or other oil) in a pan on medium heat and cook 3-5 mins a side.

Such an easy tasty meal!

Ever have one of those weeks?

This has been one rough week. Last Saturday our little Georgie boy started acting a little bit funny. It was way uncharacterist of him, so I called the vet to find out what to do. I was told to keep an eye on him and let them know of any changes... Well he started to perk up a bit and seemed ok Sunday. Monday morning rolls around and he doesn't want to eat or drink so we head on into the vet to see what's going. Turns out he's got a pretty bad UTI, so he get's some meds and fluids and we head home. Tuesday... things go from bad to worse, and Wednesday we head back to the vet because now George has developed a bad virus and can't breath out of his nose, which is not good at all for a cat. So he gets some more fluids and starts on some different antibiotics and heads back home with me. We suffer through another day at home on Thursday and head back to the vet again on Friday and he hasn't been home since. So now for the last two days, George has been in critical care both at the emergency hospital and our vet. Turns out all this extra stress the virus and UTI have wrecked on his little body has made an underlining heart conditions rear it's ugly head. While it isn't necessarily a death sentence for a cat to have a heart condition, it will mean he'll need more care in the future, also assuming he responds well to his current treatments to revive his health.

I never, ever thought that something like this would happen, George is a young cat at only 3 years old. It's really made Adam and me have to think long and hard about when enough is enough. How all of this played out, we have felt as long as his options are good, we are willing to take the extra steps (and finances) to provide him with a happy life. You just have to take a big leap of faith that all you're doing will have the outcome you want. He has made big progress and is scheduled to come home today about 1. I can just hope that he will continue improving when he gets home...

Tasty Fries

Can I just say I love food! I think I love cooking just as much. I just love throwing things together to create new recipes. Lately these have been the bee's knees around my house, so I present to you....

Parmesan Rosemary Garlic Fries

1lb Potatoes
2 TBS Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Salt - or to taste
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Rosemary crushed
3 TBS Grated Parmesan

1. Wash and cut up the potatoes (I used a mandolin slicer to get a nice uniform size).

2. Add all the ingredients to a bag and shake to coat evenly. I like to reuse produce bags rather than using a new ziplock bag.

3. Spread out evenly on a greased cookie sheet and pop them in a 400 degree oven. After 15-20 minutes flip them over. I generally let them bake for a total of 40-45 minutes until they are starting to get crispy.

4. Enjoy!!! I think they go splendid with a tasty BLT.

Bag Busy...

Here's a couple things I've been working on this week.

Knitted Grocery Bag


Another Zippy Bag - Front Side


Back Side

That's all for now.... Not sure exactly how much sewing will be acomplished tomorrow since it's suppose to be in the 60's. Garden here I come!

Spring Preview

I'm ready for spring... I made this sunny bag today to show it. The sun even popped out for a picture.
I love owls.... I think I could put an owl on anything.

The boys kept distracting me today. Everytime I turned around there they were begging for attention. (It is quite hard to resist those cute faces tho)