Potato Leek Soup

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:

3 large, peeled and cubed baking potatoes
1 finely sliced, washed leek
3 finely minced cloves garlic
3 tablespoons butter substitute OR olive oil
3 tablespoons rice/amaranth flour
1 quart gluten free chicken stock
1 cup soy/rice milk OR light coconut milk
2-3 teaspoons dried, crushed thyme leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Boil the cubed potatoes just until tender but not over-cooked. Drain and set aside.
2. Melt butter substitute in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add amaranth/rice flour and whisk until the mixture forms a paste. Continue to whisk until the mixture is bubbly and thick, about two minutes.
3. Add leeks and garlic and cook for two minutes. Stir to prevent burning.
4. Add the drained potatoes!
5. Slowly add chicken broth and whisk to mix.
6. Add milk and stir to blend. Add seasonings and simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes.
7. Serve warm.

http://glutenfreecooking.about.com

Baked Oatmeal

1/4 cup extra virgin Olive Oil
1/2 cup raw honey
1 organic Egg
1/2 cup Soy, almond, or rice milk
1 tsp aluminum free Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1 1/2 cups Gluten Free Rolled Oats (Bob's Red Mill)
1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 350°F
Grease or spray an 8" x 8" baking pan
bake for 30-40 minutes

http://www.grouprecipes.com

laura veirs- july flame


Fever Ray with Van Rivers & The Subliminal Kid- Stranger Than Kindness / Here Before


Fever ray- live at lulea


beachhouse- teen dream

November 17th is the annual Leonid meteor shower. Astronomers expect the showing to be quite strong this year. Plus, a new moon on the 16th will be helpful for fainter streaks to be more visible.

The shower will peak on the 17th, but meteors will begin to streak on the 10th or 11th and continue until about the 19th or 20th. The meteors will begin after midnight and continue until the early morning when the higher rates will be seen by the hour.

The best viewing will be for those living in central and eastern Asia, with rates up to a few hundred per hour during the most intense activity. But, even for those in the United States, a display of a few dozen meteors an hour is quite possible.

Although the shower will be visible to most of the US and Canada, viewers in the eastern parts have the best advantage to witness the maximum activity, which is expected between 3:30 and 5:30 a.m. EST. The radiant of the shower, or the perspective point from which the meteors appear to originate from, will be up in the darker southeastern skies. Since the radiant will be high in the sky, more meteors will flash into view all over.

The Leonid radiant is within the constellation Leo, the backwards question-mark star pattern, which is the outline of the head and mane of the Lion.

So get your lawn chairs, binoculars and, if it's cold enough where you are, a blanket, then head for the backyard or an open area. Make sure to face the eastern sky starting at 12:30 a.m., when the Leo constellation rises. The meteors will streak until the early morning hours.

-examiner.com

Roasted Eggplant Tapenade

To roast:
1 Large eggplant
Sea salt
1/2 red onion
4 cloves of garlic
4 plum or Roma tomatoes
Extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Dried parsley

To assemble:
1/2 cup ripe olives
1-2 teaspoon agave nectar
1 heaping tablespoon capers
1 tablespoon or so chopped fresh parsley, for serving

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
chop eggplant, onions, garlic and tomatos.
drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and sprinkle on parsley
mix all together and put in a roasting pan
bake for an hour
and serve over GF pasta/or rice and some brown rice chips

http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/

saytown

san antonio, tx

the closer to mexico we get the more it feels like actually being there. this city was very beautiful and was full of history. this just might be the colonial williamsburg of texas. we did so much in such a short time and it is great that we are only an hour away. totally playing the tourist role on this trip- we saw the alamo along with the first 2 of the 4 Missions, strolled along with the dogs and had dinner on the river walk, wandered through the neighborhoods lined w gorgeous spanish haciendas, ate and got a bit tipsy on strawberry margaritas at mi tierra- the most amazing mexican restaurant ive ever seen while being serenaded by two genuine mariachi men (and did i mention that it is open 24 hours!), and got lost in el Mercado full of hand made day of the dead dolls. o'henry's house also happens to be smack dab in the center of a random parking lot downtown. there is much more to see- next time i want to go to the japanese sunken gardens, the other 2 Missions, have lunch at the the Buckhorn Saloon, the spanish governors palace, walk through the location of 1968s world's fair, and add on to our list of ghost tours!

my first tea set
Ive been eyeing this beaut for awhile now

olive really wanted lady's treat and lady wouldnt let her have it so she threw a temper tantrum. she has the cutest personality. my little baby eagle

"We work on ourselves in order to help others, but we also help others in order to work on ourselves" -Pema Chodron


yesterday was my first time going to yoga in austin and my first time doing yoga since i did bikram when i lived in nashville a few years back. (well, besides for yoga on wii fit that i did for a few weeks)
it was quite enjoyable. i forget sometimes how much i need to allow myself to escape from my mind, slow down and relax and stretch more often. i felt rusty- mentally and physically. for now i am going to start going every wednesday and work my way up. its a beautiful studio. and the best part is that it is donation only. not being able to drop 18 dollars a session is mainly why i haven't done yoga in so long.

ive always wanted to have a garden.
when we first got to austin we bought 5 really beautiful pots (along with our chiminea) at Miguel's imports. but it wasnt until yesturday that we actually planted anything in them. we stopped by a local garden nursery and bought some winter flowers, agave, hot peppers and some seeds. my friend adam gave us some seeds also for a house warming present (upon my request) and i had planted the basil and dill seeds awhile ago. the basil sprouted quickly and died shortly after but just to be safe i moved the pot from the kitchen to the railing outside to see any of the seeds survived. surely enough one sprouted! the dill did really well and i definitely over planted the tiny pot i put them in. so yesturday i replanted a bunch of the sprouts into individual tiny plastic pots to see if they will keep growing now that they have more room. also i planted about 9 arugala seeds in individual pots to get them started. hopefully its not to late for them. next to them on the railing is a baby cactus, a tomato plant, a replant of the pepper plant, more dill and last but not least- a bull skull that stephanie found on her way to her soccer game 2 weeks ago. so its a good start to hopefully a future of gardening, once we have a big yard. im hoping to learn a lot more about when things are in season and what thrives in shade, what needs full sun, etc. i like this.