An Oscar-worthy drink

Naturally, a fabulous night like the Oscars calls for an equally fabulous drink to go alond with it. One worthy of both the requisite Oscar drinking games (drink everytime someone accidentally swears, or references a previous swear, or flubs, or every time that James Franco looks like he's high...), but also the elegance of the night.

Of course, I turned to Martha for such an idea. And she gave me Raspberry-Herb Cocktail. I decided on this particular drink because it was both fizzy - prosecco - and fruit - full of raspberry. Plus, I felt that the herb finish would add a sort of panache the night deserved.

Plus, it was super easy to make the drinks on the fly, or in this case, at my friend's Academy Awards party. I mushed up some raspberries, which by the way were ridiculously expensive at five dollars for a tiny box. I then added some mint to this mixture in small pieces, mushing these up as well. I dumped this mix in a pitcher and added in a bottle of Prosecco (the cheap kind of course) and a cup or so of vodka for good measure.

I thought these were delicious! And the best part was that they weren't too sweet, so you could easily go back for more. In my opinion, this made a perfect Oscar night even better. Nothing like good friends, good food, and a great drink.

Recipe (courtesy of Martha Stewart at marthastewart.com):

 

Serves 8

• 1 1/2 pints fresh raspberries (about 4 cups)
• 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar
• 6 large sprigs (about 2 ounces) fresh mint, basil, or both, plus more for garnish
• 1/2 cup vodka
• Juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons)
• 1 (750 mL) Prosecco or Lambrusco  

Directions

 

Reserve 16 berries. Mash the remaining berries, the sugar, and herbs in a large glass bowl. Stir in vodka, lemon juice, and Prosecco. Pour mixture through a sieve into a pitcher, pressing through; discard solids. Serve over ice. Squeeze 2 berries into each drink. Garnish with herb sprigs.

 

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Raspberry-Herb Cocktail - Martha Stewart Recipes

Thank goodness I'm not an actress...

...because instead of squeezing into a pair of Spanx, ten pounds of makeup, and a dress that would most likely end up on the worst dressed lists, I am scarfing down delicious food and watching said actresses.

It's that time of year again: Oscar time!

As those of you who read my take on the Superbowl are aware, I am a HUGE fan of American traditions. The Oscars are no exception. In fact, my love for the Oscars is so strong, I actually feel BAD for my sister who is partying it up in Barcelona because, for the first time ever, she can't watch them and will instead be asleep because they are on at 4am her time. [Sorry, Allison! Hope Barca is great anyway :)]

Naturally, I will be watching the Oscars starting in t-minus 23-ish minutes as this handy countdown timer is telling me.

To celebrate, I am having a mini-Oscar party with a few of my very very favorite people in the entire world. For the occasion, I decided that a fabulous onion dip was in order. And Martha... duhhh... came through tremendously.

I decided to make her Sweet Onion Dip because it looked like it would taste absolutely fabulous. And it was super fast and easy, so I won't miss out on any of the red carpet action.

Everything went smoothly. I sauteed the onions, cut up some scallions (which, I hope are essentially the same thing as chives), and mixed in the (reduced fat) sour cream, (reduced fat) cream cheese, and a dash of (red wine, substituted for white wine) vinegar.

Let me just say... yum! Not being famous never tasted so good. And now, for the Oscars!

Oatmeal "cookies"

I have been totally craving something sweet. As those who know me are definitely aware, I have a major sweet tooth and pretty much adore dessert. This has been difficult given that I can't really have sugar or carbs anymore. I am literally at the point where I am stuck chewing sugarless gum, chugging Diet Coke, or brushing my teeth if I want a sweet taste. This is unacceptable.

So today I took on a challenge: attempt to bake healthy cookies that are pre-diabetic approved. As it turns out this is easier said than done.

I decided on Oatmeal Cookies as the perfect antidote to my case of the sugar blahs. Of course, I had to make some intense substitutions to Martha's recipe.

Based on some extensive internet research and some logic, I made the following substitutions to the recipe:

• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour - substituted whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour - substituted whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup toasted wheat germ - substituted whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder - substituted creme of tartar and baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened - substituted margarine
• 1 cup granulated sugar - substituted Splenda
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar - substituted sugarless maple syrup
• 2 large eggs - substituted 1 cup of Sprite Zero
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups raisins - omitted, I can't have dry fruit anymore

Once I mixed all the ingredients and baked the cookies, I was ready for a taste test. The resulting oatmeal balls did not taste like cookies, but were definitely part way there. They were a bit doughy, no doubt due to the use of wheat flour instead of white flour, which is much more water absorbent. In addition, they weren't nearly as sweet as most cookies, perhaps because I substited sugarless maple syrup for brown sugar. 

This is definitely a work in progress, but I won't give up! Next time, I'll have to figure out how to make the cookies less doughy and a bit sweeter. Until then, I'll definitely be enjoying these "cookies".

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together oats, flour, wheat germ, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Put butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add oat mixture; mix until just combined. Mix in raisins.
2. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly.
3. Bake until golden and just set, about 14 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks using a spatula; let cool completely. Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies - Martha Stewart Recipes

Never-ending winter

I've just had it. Are you done yet, winter? Can I show my legs again? Will my toes ever see the light of day?

The current answer appears to be no.

Yet another day of dreary rain and wind and everything is damp and miserable and terrible and why won't the sun come out?!

In the meantime, I made an awesome knit hat. As I don't believe in umbrellas (I find them dangerous and unwieldy) so this comes in handy when the rain is coming down and it's still cold out.

Martha had a super simple pattern to knit a beanie. I bought some fairly cheap yarn at Joann's and got to work. I cast on 40 stitches and knit two rows. I then worked in stockinette, knitting one row and pearling one row. One every knit row, I decreased one stitch by knitting two stitches together at once. When it looked like it was the right size, I cast off and wove the end into the existing work.

I then folded the project in half and sewed up the side with yarn to close it up and make a hat form. Simple, fast, and it works as a basic hat. As it is going to rain for the next few days, I'm sure I'll have plenty of use for this.

Pattern: (from Martha Stewart @ marthastewart.com)
 
Finished size: 20-inch circumference (adult medium); gauge: 8 stitches and 12 rows in stockinette = 4 inches.
You will need: U.S. size 15 needles, 1 skein chunky wool in red, 1 skein mohair in beige.
To knit hat: Cast on 40 stitches, working with both yarns together. Knit 2 rows. Work in stockinette (knit 1 row, purl the next; repeat) for 6 inches. Next row: Knit 3, knit 2 together (see "Decreasing" below). Next row: Purl. Next row: Knit 2, knit 2 together. Next row: Purl. Next row: Knit 1, knit 2 together. Next row: Purl. Bind off. Snip yarn, leaving 8-inch tail. Thread tail through yarn needle, and pass needle through bind-off stitches and tighten; sew up seam as shown below. We used contrasting yarn to make the seaming visible, but you should use the same yarn you knit with. Begin at the top, using a yarn needle to pick up the horizontal bar between the first and second stitches. Cross to the other side and pick up corresponding bar. Continue from side to side until finished.

Decreasing

There are many ways to decrease, but this is the easiest. The method is the same as the knit stitch, except two stitches are knit at the same time.
1. Insert right needle upward and into two stitches on left needle, entering lower stitch first, then upper one.
2. Wrap yarn behind right needle and then forward between the needles, as when knitting.
3. Tip right needle downward, catching wrapped piece and drawing it down through the two loops on left needle. Use right needle to slide this loop upward and off left needle. You have now decreased one stitch.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Knit Hat - Martha Stewart Crafts

Meatballs, kosher style

I have been craving meat like CRAZY lately. Keeping kosher means that my meat options are usually extremely limited. This means that I am essentially a vegetarian 90% of the time, which for someone who loves meat, kind of sucks.

Thankfully, I happened to have some kosher ground turkey meat on hand in the freezer to satisfy my craving. I decided that the best thing to do with said turkey was to make some meatballs! Because who doesn't love meatballs.

Naturally, Martha has an entire section of website devoted to meatball recipes. I decided on the Meatball Hero recipe, minus the hero part, because that requires bread and I'm pretty much off bread now.

I made the vegetables according to the instructions - cut up peppers, onion and zucchini and baked them in the oven with olive oil and oregano.

While this baked, I whipped up some turkey meatballs. For this aspect, I employed my own creativity. I took the ground turkey, added in a dash of egg white and oregano, and finished it off with flax seeds and whole wheat flour. I formed this mix into balls and placed these with the vegetables into the oven to cook for a bit.

Simple, but great, healthy comfort food for a random weekday. And there was plenty left over for lunches this week!

Recipe

Serves 2

• 1 onion, halved and sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
• 1 zucchini, halved crosswise then lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• Coarse salt
• 10 Mini Meatballs
• 2 hero rolls, split

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss onion, bell pepper, and zucchini with oil and oregano. Bake 15 minutes.
2. Sprinkle vegetables with vinegar, and season with salt; toss to coat. Push vegetables to one side of pan; place meatballs on other end.
3. Bake until meatballs are cooked through and vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Serve in rolls.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Meatball Hero - Martha Stewart Recipes

Soap good enough to eat

Soap-making has became one of my favorite crafts. It's just so simple and so versatile! All it takes, in most cases, is a chunk of glycerin and some miscellaneous ingredients and you're good to go.

In this soap-making edition, I decided to use some ingredients that I (and many other Americans) have lying around in my kitchen. Martha calls these soaps, "Pantry Soaps," and for good reason - they are one step below edible.

Martha had a variety of different "recipes" for kitchen-based soaps, but I went for the one that seemed to have a really interesting texture. I was immediately drawn to the soaps she made that had oatmeal in them, for this very reason. Plus, it brings me back to taking an oatmeal bath as a child with the chicken pox, and although this is not necessarily a happy memory, it still reminds me of childhood.

I melted down some glycerin, as per usual. Then, I added in a tablespoon of honey (which I am not longer allowed to eat, but I can still use on my body... I hope). Instead of ginger, I used a tablespoon or so of cinnamon because I absolutely love the way it smells. Finally, I added in the main ingredient: plenty of oatmeal.

For molds, this time, I decided to use cupcake foils, because I thought they would make a really interesting texture on the soaps. I poured the soap into the foils while they were in the cupcake pan, so that the pan would make them keep their shape.

An hour or so later, I had these awesome soaps that smell amazing and will make great gifts. The one issue will them is that, as I had predicted, the oatmeal sunk down towards the bottom of the mold and is all clustered towards the top of the soap now. Damn you, gravity! Thwarting my best plans again.

Craft is by Martha Stewart at marthastewart.com. For more about this craft, visit http://www.marthastewart.com/article/pantry-soaps.

Flounder, just your typical white fish

The closest I have come to making flounder is watching the Little Mermaid. Honestly, I really can't tell the difference between the various white fishes... talapia? sole? flounder? What really is the difference between these different fish species after all, at least as far as taste and texture? Anyone? Bueller?

In any event, I set out to cook some flounder today, if for no other reason than I found flounder in my local grocery and it was relatively inexpensive. That, and Martha had an incredible recipe for it on her website.

In general, I am a fan of anything and everything breaded. Throw some crumbs on a frog, bake it or fry it, and I'll eat it. Naturally, therefore, I was drawn to this recipe for Baked Flounder with Roasted Tomatoes. It looked superbly delicious.

I started out with the plum tomatoes, which I sprinkled with tarragon, olive oil, salt and Splenda (instead of sugar... sounds weird, but tastes fairly normal). I baked these in the oven until they were burned onto the cookie sheet - not Martha's instructions, just my idiocy. The burnt skins pealed off and the tomatoes were cooked just fine; now I just need to scrub burnt remains off the metal sheet.

As I can no longer eat white bread, and don't have a food processor, I resorted to making my own bread crumbs by toasting whole grain Ezekiel bread, which is one of the few breads that is pre-diabetic approved. It's not bad when it's covered with plenty of olive oil/margerine/used in recipes but otherwise tastes like cardboard (A side note: Ezekiel cereal is certifiably disgusting. It has the consistency of mush and even with sugar free syrup and cinnamon has the distinct taste of dirt). I crumbled the bread by hand and mixed with salt and olive oil. I spread the fillet with some Dijon mustard and pressed the breadcrumbs on and stuck the concoction in the oven.

The sauce was simple, I used Spectrum Canola Oil Mayonnaise which is DELICIOUS and much healthier than regular mayo. Canola oil is definitely approved for me and as I am obsessed with mayo, I now use this on everything. To this I added a bit of lemon and some tarragon and let it sit while the fish baked.

The meal was filling and delicious. One thing though: I am not a huge fan of roasted tomatoes, I learned. They were a bit too gushy and sweet and something about it just didn't sit right. I think I'll stick with raw tomatoes from now on...

The Flounder I know and love.

RECIPE (courtesy of Martha Stewart, marthastewart.com)

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 6 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for one of the baking sheets
• 3/4 teaspoon dried tarragon
• pinch sugar
• coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 3 slices white sandwich bread (about 1 ounce each), torn into large pieces
• 4 flounder fillets (1 1/2 pounds total)
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Place tomatoes on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon oil, teaspoon tarragon, sugar, salt, and pepper; toss to coat. Arrange tomatoes cut side up. Roast on lower rack until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. (Keep oven on for fish.)
2. Meanwhile, make sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, remaining 1/2 teaspoon tarragon, and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and brush with oil. In a food processor, place bread, a pinch each salt and pepper, and remaining tablespoon oil; pulse until fine crumbs form.
4. Lay fillets flat on prepared baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Spread top sides with mustard; sprinkle with bread crumbs, pressing to adhere. Bake on upper rack until fish is cooked through and crumbs are browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve with tomatoes and sauce.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Baked Flounder with Roasted Tomatoes - Martha Stewart Recipes

"Spring" cleaning

It's time. Time for spring, but more important time for some intensive spring cleaning. I don't consider myself a particularly dirty person, but I am definitely messy. In my head there is a clear difference - I am not gross, I am just disorganized... or at least that's what I tell myself.

Part my intent with starting this blog was to start to do things differently, to motivate myself to get off my butt and take care of business. Learning how to clean properly is just one step along the way.

And so it was that I found myself on this lovely day off, this President's Day, with new snow in the trees outside, prepared to clean. I was going to clean the Hell out of my apartment.

I turned to Martha for advice, solace, and an inspiration of sorts. And she gave me something to start with: Baking Soda. Baking soda, apparently, is a great all-purpose cleaner that can be used to clean throughout the house, from the kitchen to the bathroom.

As Martha directed, I mixed three parts hot water with one part baking soda to start cleaning in the kitchen. With this mixed, I was able to easily scrub all the grime and cooked on gunk on the stove, counter and sink area.

Then, I turned to the dreaded bathroom, a place of mysterious grime, mildew and mold. I added a bit of dish-washing detergent into the baking soda/water mix and got to work.

I'll spare you all the gory details, but suffice to say it was not a pleasant experience. I don't think I'll ever eat again. Well... at least not until I can get the smells and sights of cleaning the bathroom out of my head. The horrors aside, at least the baking soda worked wonders! Like magic, all the grossness came off and I am left with a fabulous, sparkling clean apartment.

I have told my roommates they can thank me with a pair of shoes or a diamond ring. I also take cash or check.

Dyeing for summer

Working my way through Martha's various craft techniques, it was time that I try my hand at some dyeing. As per usual, I decided to start small. Instead of dying fabric, I gravitated towards dyeing beads.

Thankfully, I had ordered a ton of wooden beads online, in preparation for just this day. I found an awesome dyeing craft, Dyed Wooden Bead Necklaces, which looked extremely cool. There is something really beachy and summery about these necklaces; this is perfect as I am anticipating the change of seasons with excitement mixed with desperation. It has to start getting warmer sometime... right?

The dying process was actually really fun and cathartic after a particularly stressful week, and a great craft for a lazy three-day weekend. I filled tupperware containers with different levels of boiling water and added in a a range of different powdered Rit dye colors, which I ordered in bulk from Joann's.

I pretty much eye-balled the formulations for different colors but here is what I used:
- The darkest red beads, I made using a mix of Wine and Petal Pink. 
- The light purple beads were mostly Purple with a dash of Petal Pink.
- Teal beads were Teal with a touch of Tan
- Yellow beads were just Golden Yellow
- For the dark blue beads, I used Royal Blue with a dash of Teal
- Light blue beads I made using Teal, Royal Blue, and Tan

I strung the beads on different lengths of nylon beading string. Then, I placed each string of beads into different dye formulations. I kept them in for roughly 4-6 minutes, taking them out when I was satisfied with the color they became.

The result is totally awesome. I am going to restring these beads in different amounts and make some cool, bright necklaces that I can give as gifts or wear myself. I made one necklace using the Wooden-Bib Necklace Craft that I made a few weeks ago, and the dye definitely adds a unique effect. I can't wait to bring out the big guns and dye some fabric next time!



















Craft information, courtesy of Martha Stewart, can be found here.

Quinoa - hard to spell, easy to make

It was just one of those days when I wasn't in the mood to do anything fancy or difficult. It was a long weekend, and I was in desperate need of some R&R and some healthy food.

Quinoa was the perfect anecdote for my case of the blahs. Simple to make and loaded with just the right kind of nutrients, quinoa  is a complex carbohydrate, which, as I've learned, is the good kind of carb.

I hunted for a simple quinoa recipe, and Martha came through with a salad I could make in a couple of minutes flat, Quinoa Salad with Cucumber.

I cooked up the quinoa in a sauce pan with water; this took all of 15 minutes before the grain was nice and soft. I cut up some cucumber and added that and grape tomatoes in for good measure. It was as simple as that! I topped the salad off with lemon juice and ended up with a fabulous, filling Saturday lunch.

RECIPE

Ingredients

Serves 6
2 cups water
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
Coarse salt
1 small shallot, finely chopped
3 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small English cucumber, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise (1 cup)
3/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

- Bring water, quinoa, and 1 teaspoon salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat; cover, and simmer until tender and water has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a baking sheet, and let cool on a wire rack.
- Combine shallot, vinegar, and red-pepper flakes in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in oil until emulsified.
- Transfer quinoa to a large bowl, and stir in cucumber, parsley, and vinaigrette. Season with salt.

Ectomorph, endomorph, mesomorph?

Part of getting my blood levels under control is beginning a new exercise regime. This is easier said than done for someone who hasn't had a serious gym routine in years. They say the first step in addressing any personal issue is admitting that you have a problem; well my problem is laziness and inertia - I just can't seem to find the motivation to get of my butt and head to the gym. At this point, I don't really have a choice, my health depends on it.

I turned to Martha today for a helpful dose of motivation and advice. She came through with an interesting analysis, a work out strategy based on my body type. Apparently, it's important to tailor your workout strategy to your natural body type, whether it be ectomorph (slender), endomorph (curvy), or mesomorph (muscular.)

Jennifer Kries, one of Martha's Well Living gurus and a Philadelphia fitness coach writes, "Ectomorphs are live wires. Everything about them moves fast. They think quickly, act quickly, digest quickly, and can accomplish a lot in a short amount of time." This is unbelievably accurate for me. The rest of the description is eerily familiar, down to a description of "transluscent skin," which those who know me best probably immediately associate with my typical glow-in-the-dark appearance.

To address my inertial laziness, Kries and her colleagues recommend that I focus on high impact, high speed exercise that I can do for a short period of time: tennis, running, and jumping rope. They recommend adding in some toning and muscle building exercises to combat my genetic lack of muscle tone and weird skinny-flabbiness.

I feel better now that I have a game plan, something to aspire to. Instead of working out without a mission, I now have some tips tailored to me that can give me more of a purpose.

I started on my journey this week, and joined New York Sports Club. I decided running would be a great way to ease my way into things. So run, I did. Twice this week! Which, for me, is definitely something slightly short of a miracle. I plan on growing on this and trying to keep to working out three days a week, which will definitely help get my sugar and high bad cholesterol down. After all, there is no way to go except down from here.

I am hopeful that getting in touch with my body will provide just the motivation I need to get to work. I can thank Martha for my inspiration.

Happy birthday, Mike!

Today is my roommate's birthday and no birthday is complete without cake or cupcakes. Even if I can't eat said cake or cupcakes due to my current freeze on white flour and carbohydrates.

Being the awesome roommate that I am, I decided to do some baking and, for the first, time cook cupcakes without the help of a box of mix. This was much easier than I had anticipated.

I chose an easy recipe to start; my other roommates birthday is coming up in a few weeks, and I vow to try something more complex then. I gave my roommate and choice, and he picked Martha's Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Chocolate Chip Frosting, an excellent choice in my opinion. In order to make the whole thing more festive, I substituted M&Ms for chocolate chips, so the cupcakes would be nice and colorful.

The best thing about this recipe was that it omitted whole eggs, and just used a combination of milk and egg whites instead. Of course, this doesn't make the resulting cupcakes THAT much healthier, but they are definitely super light and fluffy, which was an added bonus.

The recipe called for a basic buttercream, which is essentially just powdered sugar, butter, and a dash of vanilla. I only used half the powdered sugar because the frosting (yes, I dared to try some, don't tell my doctor), was already really sweet.

Mike caught my other roommate night eating my cupcakes at 2am last night, so I'd say this recipe was a success. I hope these lucky non-pre-diabetics enjoy without me... I'm not bitter at all.

RECIPE (courtesy of Martha Stewart at marthastewart.com)

Ingredients
Makes 30
3 1/4 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 ounces (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
5 large egg whites, room temperature
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Chocolate Chip Frosting

Directions

Make cupcakes as directed in Basic Cupcake How-To, omitting eggs and using milk and vanilla for wet ingredients. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks, and fold into batter. Fold in chocolate chips. Bake cupcakes about 22 minutes. Frost with buttercream, and serve immediately.

You say chickpea, I say garbanzo

Chickpeas aka garbanzo beans (and a few other aliases), have definitely never been on my list of food cravings. I guess it's because I just really don't like their texture - mushy but somehow grainy at the same time. And they always seem so bland! No matter what dressing I apply to them, they resist all attempts at flavoring.

But they're so good for you! How can I not eat them now?

Two cups of chickpeas contains a person's entire daily value of fiber, much of it insoluble fiber, which is excellent for digestion. They are also loaded with vitamins and nutrients - protein, folate, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium (which is emphasized on my pre-diabetic diet), iron and zinc. Suffice to say, chickpeas need to become my best friend.

I decided that a salad would provide an excellent reintroduction for me to garbanzos, my former enemy turned best friend. Martha had a fabulous Mediterranean Chickpea Salad that I knew would totally fit the bill.

Although Martha soaked and cured the garbanzos herself, I opted to buy them canned, a lazy-person's version of chickpeas. I combined these with generous portions of garlic, yellow pepper, cucumber, carrots, grape tomatoes, and chopped parsley. I also decided to add in some brown rice for a more filling salad and some spinach simply because I had some left over and I didn't want it to go bad. I finished the salad off with balsamic and olive oil, my favorite healthy, go to, dressing.

Will all the other ingredients, I hardly noticed that I was eating chickpeas. And I have to admit, I really love this salad. It is a perfect mix of crunchy and colorful! I made plenty of it and plan on eating this for lunch a few days this week.

Soapy

Today was as good a day as any to start learning the soap making trade. I have already tackled candles and some light jewelry making... I figured soap making would be a sinch!

Turns out... it was! I ordered a ton of soap-making supplies from an online retailer, Candlewic, awhile back. Unfortunately, due to the blizzaster of January, the supplies got destroyed and they had to reship them out to me, so I just got them last week. I have been itching to experiment ever since.

I decided to begin with the easiest possible soap instructions. I have months of crafting ahead of me, so don't worry, I'll tackle the hard stuff in the coming months.

The best place to start, I thought, was with Martha's Soap Cubes craft. And it was just as easy as it looked! I melted down a bunch of glycerin soap in a bow in the microwave. This took all of 3 minutes. I decided to make red and purple cubes, so I added red food coloring to one batch and red and blue food coloring to the next.


I also decided to add in some rosemary essential oil. Essential oils are essentially these aromatic, super-concentrated compounds, which are supposed to have different medicinal properties. According to Mediterranean tradition, rosemary essential oil is supposed to stimulate hair growth, boost mental activity, relieve respiratory problems and reduce pain. All of these things (minus, perhaps the hair growth stimulation of course) seemed pretty awesome to me, so I decided to go with it.

Once I had added food coloring and essential oil to the melted soap, I poured it into ice trays which I had pre-coated with vaseline, to allow for easy removal.

I think these look and smell pretty cool! I can't wait to give these as a gift; if only I had thought to do this before Valentines Day. My only concern is that the food coloring will come off when I use it... so I will be sure and test the soap on myself before I go giving them away.

Cracker craving... solved!

Happy Valentines Day! In honor of today, I decided to make something heart healthy, instead of something sugary and delicious... it's a sacrifice (I guess) I'm willing to make. After all, the heart is the organ of love!

It's been less than a week since I began this pre-diabetic diet and I already miss crackers more than anything. I just love munching on crunchy, salty things throughout the day and without them I find myself with the overwhelming feeling that something is missing. I have nothing to do with my mouth! Nothing to munch on to distract myself from the stresses of the day!

Martha, as per usual, came to the rescue. On her website, tucked in the Whole Living section, I found a perfect list of healthy, salty snacks that promise to fit the bill. Number one on the list: Flaxseen-and-Onion-Crackers. I decided to give it a go.

As luck would have it, I had just obtained bags of flaxseed and flaxseed meal, which were both listed on my list of approved foods and ingredients. Flaxseed is a completely awesome power food that is rich in super-healthy omega-3s. They are also loaded with fiber and magnesium, two supplements that are important for anyone, diabetic or not.

The one stumbling block of the recipe was the flour, a major no-no for someone who isn't supposed to have carbohydrates. But thankfully, I was prepared; I was armed with wheat flour. The one thing about wheat flour is that it absorbs more moisture than white flour, so I just added in a bit more skim milk to make the mixture doughy-er.

The crackers, while not as deliciously unhealthy as processed white flour crackers, are pretty good and definitely edible. The onion and parsley gives the crackers a more interesting flavor, and offset the blandness of the wheat flour and flax meal.

I am planning on having these for lunch today with sardines, another approved food. I'm looking forward to it... Martha (and my mom!) would be so proud!

RECIPE (courtesy of Martha Stewart at marthastewart.com)

Ingredients
(Makes about 5 dozen)
1/4 cup whole golden flaxseed, plus 1/4 cup ground golden flaxseed (from about 2 tablespoons whole)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting - NOTE: I used whole wheat flour, and added a bit more milk to make up for this change
1/2 teaspoon baking powder - NOTE: I used a combo of baking soda and creme of tartar instead
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, plus more for seasoning (optional)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon finely grated onion
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup skim milk
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
Freshly ground pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Put whole and ground flaxseed, flour, baking powder, salt, and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 2 minutes. Stir in onion and parsley. With mixer on low speed, pour in milk. Mix until dough just comes together (do not over-mix).

Divide dough in half. Roll out each piece on a lightly floured surface to a 9-inch square (1/8 inch thick).Transfer to two baking sheets. Cut each square with a fluted pastry wheel or a knife into about 30 crackers (each 1 1/2 inches square).

Brush with egg white; season with pepper, and salt, if desired. Bake until slightly firm, about 20 minutes. Switch positions of sheets; flip crackers. Bake until light brown and firm, 18 to 20 minutes more. Transfer to wire racks to cool.

Meringue disaster

I attempted to make meringues for the first time today and let me say - it's easier said than done. It all seemed so simple! Mix together some basic ingredients, whip it up until it is firm, light and fluffy, and bake it in the oven for multiple hours.

Everything was going well until I came to the whipping part. I had decided to substitute sugarless maple syrup for brown sugar, in an attempt to pre-diabetes proof the recipe. Unfortunately, this substitution seems to have done something to upset the rising power of the meringue.

I began mixing. And mixing. And mixing. According to the instructions, after around 5 minutes, the mixture was supposed to have firm mounds in it... but this was not the case. Many minutes of mixing later, the mixture wasn't rising the way it was supposed to and it ended up a liquidy mess.

I decided to just go with this and I poured the mix, with grapefruit juice in it, into a baking pan with a thick lip on the sides to keep the meringue in. I hoped that this would create a meringue-cake-like-dish. I baked it according to the instructions.

I ended up with what I can safely term an excellent start towards baking an actual meringue. The result was an edible, if not SUPER delicious meringue-cake-like creation. I have to say I'm kind of proud of myself for salvaging such a disastrous situation!

RECIPE (courtesy of Martha Stewart at marthastewart.com)


Ingredients

Makes about 1 Dozen

• 5 large egg whites
• 1 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
• Pinch of cream of tartar
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Finely grated zest of 1 orange
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated grapefruit zest
• Pink gel-paste food coloring

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Put egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar into the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water.Whisk until mixture is warm and sugar has dissolved.
2. Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, beat until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla.
3. Transfer half the meringue to another bowl. Using a rubber spatula, stir orange zest into 1 bowl of meringue. Stir grapefruit zest and pink food coloring into remaining meringue.
4. Place a 3 1/4-by-3 1/2-inch heart-shape cutter in one corner of a parchment-lined baking sheet. Using a small spatula, fill heart with meringue; swirl. Push down edges of meringue with the spatula, and lift up cutter. Repeat, spacing meringue hearts 2 inches apart on baking sheets.
5. Bake until meringues are firm and can be removed easily from parchment paper, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Meringues can be stored between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

A crunchy snack

The hardest part of my new low-carb diet is definitely going to be having small, appropriate meals often throughout the day. I absolutely love the idea of grazing often, but I need to find crunchy, satisfying and portable foods that I can eat throughout the day of work.

Martha has an awesome section on her website where she features snacks that are under 200 calories. I decided on something crunchy, and the first recipe looked like it would completely do the trick!

I mixed together walnuts and almonds - both healthy nuts that are on my approved list of foods. I combined these nuts with flaxseeds, quinoa, and sunflower seeds, which is a perfect combination of complex carbs. I whisked these ingredients together with some egg whites and added in cayenne, cumin and cinnamon. To top it off, I used a mix of splenda and water as a low-sugar alternative to the honey Martha used in her recipe.

Once baked in the oven, the nut mix was a filling, healthy, crunchy snack that I am sure will help me beat the hunger I sometimes experience in the middle of the day. I plan on packing it little ziplocs and bringing it to work with me every day as a nice substitute to a carb-loaded snack.

RECIPE

Mix 3 cups whole nuts with 1/4 cup each flaxseeds, quinoa, and sunflower seeds (bottom left in photo). In a separate bowl, whisk 2 egg whites with 2 tablespoons honey, 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, and 1/4 teaspoon each cayenne, cumin, and cinnamon. Toss with nut mix.

Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet; bake at 325 degrees until dry, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Scrape from pan while cooling, to avoid sticking. Makes 16 servings (178 calories each).

Pre-Diabeat this

I got some blood work done last week and got some surprising news... I'm pre-diabetic. Naturally, I jumped right past the "pre" to the "diabetic" and had a minor freak out which has lasted me until today. Essentially, having pre-diabetes means that I am on my way to diabetes, but that with proper nutrition and exercise, I can stop the progression.

"Proper nutrition" means only healthy carbohydrates, no flour and minimal amounts of bread or any kind of leavened substance. The good thing about having this blog is that I can adapt Martha's recipes to met my new dietary needs, which I'm sure will be a new challenge and adventure; I can't wait to try baking with wheat flour and egg substitutes.

For day 1 of my new diet, I decided brown rice would be a fantastic, healthy option and a great substitute for the white carbs I am used to eating. And, as luck would have it, my awesome grandmother just sent me a rice cooker!

Martha had a fantastic recipe for brown-rice salad with spinach and tomatoes that seemed like it would meet all of my dietary rules. I cooked up some brown rice and in my brand new rice cooker. I let it cool for a bit, and then mixed the rice with garlic, cucumber, spinach and cherry tomatoes. I topped it off with olive oil and vinegar (I used balsamic instead of red wine).

I am truly surprised at how much I enjoyed this! It was filling, and the garlic added some interesting flavor. Plus, once the rice was made, preparation was a sinch.

RECIPE: (courtesy of Martha Stewart from marthastewart.com)

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and sliced
• 2 cups baby spinach
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved 

DIRECTIONS:
 
In a large bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, dill, garlic, and sugar. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add rice, cucumber, spinach, and tomatoes; toss to combine.

Wrap it up

There is nothing worse than an awesome present hidden under ugly, unattractive wrapping. And I am always the friend who presents her gift in this way. I am the one who shows up to birthday parties ten minutes late with gifts in Duane Reade grocery bags, tags with prices still on them.

But, no longer! Thanks to Martha, I have been reformed.

Martha has an entire gallery of awesome wrapping ideas, varying in difficulty. They range from elegant, to thrifty, to all-out-ridiculously-intricate. For an upcoming friend's party, I decided on something more modern and funky.

Thankfully, I had some tissue paper and flowers lying around from my previous pom-pom project. I decided to wrap my gifts (which were, of course, two previous Channeling Martha projects), in two different variations of green tissue paper.

For an added touch of funky charm, on a budget, I printed out a sampling of Martha's modern paper templates onto normal printer paper. I cut out long strips of two of the more interesting patterns and decided to wrap one strip around each package. For the package on the left, I chose Martha's Cameo Cummerbund Wrapping Paper; for the right, I went with Swirly Wrapping Paper.

I topped the presents with the pom poms I made previously, a great finishing touch to what, in my opinion, is an excellent wrapping job. Never again will I be delivering presents in grocery bags... I swear!

P.S. I apologize deeply for the horrible quality of the above picture. I really need a better way to photograph my work that doesn't either wash out the crafts completely or make them appear dark and blurry. Any recommendations are welcome...

Glitter!

 I really needed something shiny today. For some reason work felt ridiculously long and when I got home, my bed beckoned me, tantalizingly.

I figuring something shiny was the perfect antidote to my case of the blah's, I turned to Martha for some inspiration. As always, she had an incredible craft just waiting in the wings. I decided to attempt her glitter painting idea.

Martha's site has an application through which you can upload photographs and convert the images into a blurrier, more color-stratified pallet. I chose a picture of my friends and me, which I thought would make an excellent gift for a friend's upcoming birthday celebration.The image was from New Years Eve, and I figured I could convert our dresses into swaths of sparkly color.

Once the photo was converted, I was left with a color-filled image and a few colors of glitter to apply. Instead of covering the entire image, I focused on the dresses we were wearing. I didn't want our faces to look freakishly shiny, and figured for my first attempt I wouldn't be an expert quite yet.I put swaths of glue over each of the dresses, in turn, and covered each section with a different color of glitter.

The resulting painting looks awesome! I think it will make a meaningful, pretty gift for my friend and it was relatively easy to complete. And I can thank Martha for curing my case of the Wednesdays...

Quesado-it

For the last of my Superbowl creations, I decided on a (gasp!) healthier option, particularly because I knew I was getting my cholesterol checked this week and I am scared of "failing".... again. Martha would be so proud.

There is nothing healthier than loads of spinach and mushrooms and onions. I am not a huge cooked spinach fan. I pretty much only like it when I can't taste it and when I can pretend it's not there. I know, I know, it's good for me. But why does it have to taste and look like mush?

Solution: quesadillas loaded with spinach and mushrooms. The best part of this set up is that I could trick myself into eating spinach. I didn't have to look at it, taste it, or think about it... out of site out of mind.

And the results tasted delicious! I substituted pepper Jack cheese for a Mexican low fat cheese mix because the former just isn't my favorite. I served the quesadillas, along with my french and sweet potato fries, with hot salsa. My roommate provided some low fat lime tortilla chips to top it all off.

In the end, I believe my healthier Superbowl was a success. Despite Christina's National Anthem faux pas and a less than stellar Black Eyed Peas halftime performance, this Superbowl Sunday was fabulous. Can't wait for it to come around again...

(Sweet) Potato Fries

Sometimes, regular french fries just aren't enough. There are moments when only sweet potato fries will do.

Yesterday, in honor of the Superbowl, I decided to try my hand at sweet potato fries. I thought they would be a great compliment to the french fries I also made.

Martha's recipe called for two sweet potatoes. I bought two yams at my local grocery store - I think yams and sweet potatoes are the same thing... right?

I didn't have Mediterranean spice, so I improvised with thyme and tarragon. I sprinkled a bit of each into three egg whites and beat it as much as I could (or until my hand was exhausted). I then dipped pre-softened (in the microwave) sweet potatoes in it.

I baked the sweet potatoes in the oven for around 15 minutes and the result were crunchy, perfect sweet potato fries. There was a bit of extra egg on hand, but I didn't notice it while I was enjoying the fries. I made a honey mustard dip for these as well, my favorite dipping sauce for sweet potato fries.