Pretty in the glass parfait glasses but I recommend serving warm:)!

Now that I know how much nutrition is in fresh herbs, I decided to make the Parsley Mint Tabbouleh (week 8) and paired it with the Minty Yogurt Tahini Sauce with the Lamb Kabobs (from Marti's website under recipes). I am such a fan of tahini now. Soom is silky smooth! The Rhubarb Apple Compote with Crumble is yummy. Again I used the coconut sugar so it is a low-glycemic and guilt-free dessert. I recommend reheating in the microwave. My husband requires a small scoop of vanilla ice cream as he adjusts to what he calls "delicious but healthy desserts". 🙄 This week I will make it again and add more strawberries!

I had not incorporated tahini in my cooking before this program. Once I learned that it is soooo good for our brain health and immunity I decided to try another recipe with tahini. I made Lemon Tahini Slaw, a recipe I found from the NY Times and I served it this evening with cornmeal crusted chicken cutlets. Arielle had talked about Soom tahini and I have been cooking with it this week. Love making matchsticks out of the radishes😉

From Week #7, I made the Mango Tahini Pops as a smoothie. I used a frozen banana and fresh mango.

I am finally sharing some photos of my recent cooking! From week #5, I made the Cassava Spaghetti with sun dried tomatoes, dandelions and mushrooms and the Spinach, Strawberry & Sunflower Salad. This was the first time I ever had dandelion greens! I also made the Strawberry Basil Jam and Strawberry Basil Chia bars (no pics). I was wary of the coconut sugar because I am not a fan of coconut but it did not taste like coconut and I love that it is low glycemic! This week I will make the Chickpea flatbread and I am thinking that the Strawberry Chia Jam on the flatbread with a little goat cheese might be nice. The strawberries that I bought this week were large and sweet.

My parents were visiting last week and I was finally able to view the videos last evening. I was amazed to hear about the benefits of chia in regard to gut health! Once a week, I prepare steel oats and add a tablespoon of chia to each serving at the same time that I add the oats to the boiling water. Sometimes I slice a banana in the winter and add at the same time. To serve, I throw on blueberries and a drip of maple syrup. In spring/summer I will add strawberries, raspberries or blackberries. This is a great make-ahead breakfast that just needs to be reheated in the microwave and keeps me feeling full for hours! I make 3-4 servings at a time.

After sprouting my lentils I made a lentil salad with mint, parsley, watermelon radish and lemon zest

I feel similar, Marti. Last evening, our daughter, Jessica and our granddaughter FT us. Jess has her in-laws visiting in Seattle. I was feeling sad when we talked about our granddaughter's first birthday on 4/22. I so wish we lived closer! Nonetheless, I continued working on the chicken tikka masala, which gave me another focus as I tasted the sauce and adjusted the spices. I love to have relaxing background music, which my husband chooses when we dine. We sat in the dining room and set a formal table for Thanksgiving, even though it was just the two of us, savoring the atmosphere and the meal. I also love having three generations in a bustling kitchen and look forward to the return of everyone together for holidays!

Finally made the pickled cauliflower!

Green Minty Smoothie made with a green apple. So refreshing! Not a fan of protein powder and my body has trouble with hemp seeds. This was yesterday's lunch, along with almond butter spread on a rice cake for protein:).

Dark chocolate is what I crave. During the January CaLM Reset, I had to train myself to give up the one square of dark chocolate I had following lunch, with a cup of decaf coffee. A sweet Cara Cara orange saved me from needing that chocolate each day! I shared it with an herbal tea, usually mint. If I didn't do this, my mind would return to the dark chocolate I was yearning! I agree with Rachel that washing and prepping is key! Months ago I became aware that I tend to get up from the computer (at my desk in the kitchen) when I am stressed or stuck on what I am working on and open the refrigerator. If I didn't have a crunchy something, I would go for cheese and crackers. Over the pandemic months, I began to clean and cut cauliflower into floret size and place them in a bag, ready to crunch. I also have apples clean and ready to eat as well. Ready to eat crunchy food is key for me!

So sweet, Rachel. Yes, I do! I had the shot on Friday and awoke feeling like myself yesterday but I felt sluggish on a run yesterday. I realized that it might have been from the vaccine when I ran this morning and had so much more energy in comparison!

I unfortunately missed the forum on Friday because I had my first COVID vaccine and felt a little achey and had a mild temp. Last evening, I prepared Tinkyada brown rice pasta and added roasted asparagus cut into one inch pieces and mixed it all with the artichoke pesto I had made a few days earlier for the frittata. YUM!!!! My frittata was a little overcooked on the underside. I guess I will need to work on that! I hadn't made one in awhile but have always felt that its tricky to know when a frittata is ready.

I served the Cauliflower Soup cold yesterday and it was great!

I prefer vegetables and fish. I tend to cook with beans in the fall/winter when preparing soups and perhaps should think about bean salads as we move toward spring/summer. Green is the predominant color in my food preparation but the greens I use have now expanded (collards, swiss chard) thanks to Marti! The January CalmRest was an introduction to pastured eggs and chicken. I would love to understand the difference between pastured and free range and organic. I have never prepared fermented foods and would like to learn.

Sorry for the delay in participation. Now that I've returned from visiting family in Park City, I'm all in! So excited to start cooking after watching the video today. Always love the recipes and how Marti allows us to be flexible while cooking. I definitely crave greens more after the January CaLM reset! Spinach and collards are in my grocery cart each week. Spring brings to mind asparagus and strawberries for me! Thinking about which herbs to plant.... See you tomorrow! Sheryl