Another week in the books! Enjoy this week’s faves!
this makes me die with laughter every time i see it
Sex Education on Netflix is the most wonderfully charming show. I can’t stop watching! The young actors are absolutely brilliant and the cast is insanely diverse. One wonderful thing about the show is that it is completely inclusive of LGBT sexuality and relationships, which gets nearly as much representation as straight ones. A perfect, perfect show.
I wrote a post a while ago about *feminine products* and trying a menstrual cup and never posted an update! I’ve been using exclusively a cup for a few months now and I’m obsessed. I’ll never go back to tampons and pads! I still keep some on hand for emergencies, but I’m a cup girl for life. The cup I use is not available anymore (it’s Hesta Organic), but I’m interested in trying other brands, like Lunette.
Not to be a dorky dad, but I just checked my credit report on creditkarma and you should too. It’s super important to be aware of your financial health!
This Twitter thread about a college professor assigning his students to make memes is solid gold.
One of you has to buy this because I’m on the Spending Fast and can’t. IT’S PERFECT.
I’m thinking of trying to do Whole30. Have you ever tried it? My best friend did and loved it—and she looks freaking fabulous to boot.
This next one is NSFW, so open at your own discretion—I’m a huge, huge fan of this little guy. I’ve been really reticent about this sort of thing, but I’ve been trying to be more open-minded!
Bonus Content: The Head and the Heart covers “Don’t Dream It’s Over” and I am deeply, madly obsessed.
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed some of this #content. As always, follow me on all the socials @highwaytochel, and check out my Poshmark store @highwaytochel. Sayonara!
Think I’m gonna get right down to business today, guys! Here’s my week in a nutshell:
I’m actually doing it, fam! I’m doing the Spending Fast. We’re shooting for a year, but it’s based on need. If I can pay my consumer debt down faster (I have a couple of ways I could do this, but they’re both pending/not guaranteed), we might not need to keep going until 2020, but honestly, the experience has been so empowering that I don’t think I’ll want to stop! I’m rereading Anna’s book, and Katy Goodman’s Insta stories have been super inspiring (she has a No Buy highlight). Just with little tweaks, my grocery bill has started to come down, I’m using cash for purchases, and we cancelled cable (finally!). Student loans go into repayment next month, so things will be really tight—I’m working on starting a side hustle job (more on that later). It feels so good to rid yourself of all the stuff in your life that’s weighing you down! P.S. Anna’s book (Kindle version) is on sale for $1.99 right now, so snatch it up!
Catastrophe series 4 is streaming on Amazon starting March 15th and I couldn’t be more excited. It’s one of my favorite pieces of media ever made. Sharon and Rob are geniuses beyond measure. I think I’m going to cancel my Amazon Prime subscription after I watch it, which is kind of a big step for me! I’ll have to buy the season of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel next year, but a one-time $12-ish purchase is better than $49-$99 a year to support a company that sucks!
Since I’m not spending money right now, I’ve been bringing my own lunch to work every day. Sometimes, that means the Trader Joe’s microwave meals that we still have from before the No-Buy, but mostly it’s meant leftovers and jar salads. I stan a jar salad. They are my favorite thing on the planet. People at work think I’m nuts rolling up to the breakroom with a quart Mason jar of lettuce but they don’t even know. You can put literally anything in a jar salad. My last one was champagne-pear salad dressing, snow peas, beet sauerkraut, mixed greens, and vegan cashew parm. Delicious!
I’m psyched to make this soup recipe. I make a mean tomato basil, but subbing cashews in for cream is genius! My belief about food is that, if you can make it vegan with little to no effort, do that shit.
I started using the iBotta app, which gives you cash back for buying certain items and submitting your receipts. It’s like coupons, but 2019. I think apps like this can be a slippery slope and convince people to buy products they don’t need, but I go through and find only things that are already on my grocery list, and choose the most cost effective brand. For instance, there was a $1 back bonus on Health-Ade Kombucha, which made it, effectively, cheaper than even the store brand. I’ve made $13 so far, off of only 2 shopping trips.
Don Cheadle’s shirt choices on SNL last night were NEXT LEVEL.
Saved the best for last: RUSSIAN DOLL. RUSSIAN DOLLLLLL! You’ve gotta watch this show. Drop what you’re doing and immediately log in to Netflix. It’s only February but this is definitely the best show of the year. Natasha Lyonne is breathtaking. We just finished last night and I am already yearning for a new season. A perfect, perfect show.
Happy Sunday! I have the dreaded task of homework to look forward to today, but hopefully you have some free time to chill out, max, and relax all cool. Here’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.
I’m so inspired by the March For Our Lives. I wish I could have gone into Boston yesterday. Be sure to sign the petition against gun violence!
The Lamplighter, Maria Susanna Cummins—Maybe 19th century sentimental fiction isn’t quite your “thing,” but I am absolutely obsessed with this book right now. The tale of little Gerty is so heartbreakingly sweet. Here’s a link to the Kindle edition, which is free!
Should I do this? It’d be nice to have Spotify Premium again, but I’m so used to that no-commercials Hulu life, that I’m not sure I can go back! It would save me $7/month, and I’d get another service. I’m torn!
This tweetdestroyed me. Bless the person that saw that connection.
I’m so excited to watch Champions on NBC! I’m into anything Mindy Kaling is involved with, and the cast is stellar!
Did you know that students and educators get a discount on digital subscriptions to the New York Times? It’s crazy affordable. I just subscribed and am loving all of this nonstop crossword action!
And, last but not least, John Oliver’s staff wrote a book about gay bunnies getting married in response to Mike Pence’s Marlon Bundo book, and it is truly, truly inspiring. It’s out of stock at the moment, but as soon as it’s back, I’m buying one for my future kid.
Sometimes, you’ve just got to make chili, but you don’t have any beans, meat, or meat-adjacent foods in the house. So you improvise! My husband is a garbanzo fiend, so I knew he wouldn’t sweat the substitution.
It’s been bitterly cold in New England for the past few weeks (no lie—we got a storm that was called a “bomb cyclone” in case we weren’t miserable enough), so something hot and spicy was what the doctor ordered.
I whipped this up using ingredients I had on hand, but it turned out so delicious, I wanted to record the recipe for posterity! Enjoy!
P.S. I highly recommend using all organic ingredients, if possible, because of course I do.
Picante Chickpea & Lentil Chili
2 cans garbanzo beans*
1 c. green lentils
6 c. vegetable broth
1 red onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 zucchini, diced
2 potatoes, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotles in Adobo sauce, diced**
juice of 1 lime
2 tbsp. tomato paste
2 c. premade salsa (or diced tomatoes)
1 oz. bourbon (or 2 oz. beer), optional
1 tbsp. coconut oil
1 tsp. cocoa powder
1 tbsp. Adobo seasoning***
1 tbsp. cumin
1 tbsp. chili powder
salt to taste
*You’re probably a better person than me and make your own chickpeas from dried. In that case, 2-3 cups should suffice.
**Add as much chipotle as you want—just be warned that going heavy on the peppers will make this very, very spicy.
***If you don’t have Adobo seasoning, get some sub garlic & onion powder, tumeric, paprika, black pepper, and oregano.
Instructions:
Over medium heat, melt the coconut oil in the bottom of a large saucepan or dutch oven. Add the red onion and celery, lightly salt. Saute until soft. Add the red pepper, potatoes, and zucchini and saute until soft. Add minced garlic and stir until fragrant, 30 sec-1 min. Turn up the heat and deglaze the pan with bourbon, if using. Return to medium heat and add garbanzos, lentils, tomato paste, salsa, chipotles, and spices. Stir until fragrant, 1 min. Add vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 mins. At the 30 min mark, check the lentils and potatoes for doneness (I know this is a meat term, but I’m appropriating it!). If soft, turn off heat and add lime juice. Salt/spice to taste.
Serve with brown rice and top with avocado, cilantro, sour cream, or shredded cheese!
I. Love. Noodles. I know that I have argued that tacos and burritos are the world’s best foods, but noodles put up a very good fight for that title. Noodles are versatile AF! There are a million different kinds, all of which are the most fun to eat. There is nothing glamorous to slurping down a big bowl of noodles—perhaps it is the great equalizer we have all sought. Maybe noodles will bring world peace at last.
gimme these right now!A note on terminology: I don’t know if this is actually correct, but to me, a noodle is derived from rice, and pasta is derived from wheat. When people call pasta products “noodles”, I get a mild aneurysm, but then again, I never said I wasn’t compulsive.
I grew up a ramen fanatic, and I never grew out of it. I did, however, grow out of that MSG life. Health nuttiness and packaged food ne sont pas les choses qui vont très bien ensemble, très bien ensemble. I’ve been listening to Rubber Soul a lot lately, can you tell?
Unnecessary and ill-advised Beatles reference aside, my life’s mission is to eat noodles daily, and this is my go-to recipe when I come home from a long day at work and just want to gorge on something that won’t give me heart disease or diabetes #pieloverforlife. This recipe is also one of many in my personal give tofu a chance crusade, the sword I have chosen to fall on. Enjoy, my loves!
Easy Breezy Noodle Bowls, serves 2
prep time: 10 mins / cook time: 10 mins
1 pkg udon noodles
2-3 c. chopped broccoli florets (the broccoli shrinks when cooked!)
1 pkg firm tofu, drained and cubed
soy sauce or tamari
sriracha
sesame oil
rice vinegar
cornstarch
sesame seeds
coconut oil for frying
agave, optional
ginger paste, optional
garlic, chopped, optional
chopped nori, optional
matchstick carrots, optional
matchstick cucumber, optional
To start, set a pot of lightly-salted water on to boil. When it reaches boiling, cook your noodles according to package directions. I buy frozen, so it usually takes about 4-minutes of cooking. Drain noodles and set aside.
Next, whisk together your soy sauce mixture. I use a few tablespoons of soy sauce, a squirt of sriracha, and a dash of sesame oil. Optionally, you can add ginger, garlic, and/or agave to this mixture to add more flavor to the final product. But this is the basic 10-minute version of this recipe, so fancy ingredients be damned!
Drain your block of tofu. Press out as much of the water as humanly possible, and then chop into cubes. This is a great guide to pressing tofu! Once cubed, toss the tofu in some cornstarch and pan fry in the oil of your choice—I like to use coconut for this. Fry the tofu until it’s golden on all sides—do your best with this, it’s hard to flip that many little pieces evenly! Then pour your soy sauce mixture over the tofu, toss in the pan until evenly coated, and then remove from heat. Save a little bit of the soy mixture—you’ll want to toss the broccoli in it later!
While the tofu is frying, get out your wok (if applicable) and start cooking your broccoli! I like to cook the broc in sesame oil, because it has such a great flavor. Heat the oil over medium heat, add the broccoli, and stir-fry! I like to let it cook in the oil for a few minutes, and then squirt in a little rice vinegar to help soften the broc (I’ve seen Hibachi chefs do this, so it must be the proper way, right?) After the broccoli has reached your desired texture, drizzle the soy sauce mixture over it, toss, remove from heat, and then proceed to assemble your bowls! Start with noodles, add broccoli, and top with tofu! Sprinkle the whole bowl with sesame seeds, and grab some chopsticks! You’re ready to eat a passably nutritious meal that kicks take-out’s ass any day of the week!
My favorite way to eat this is with an additional sprinkling of chopped nori and some cold matchstick veggies on top (carrots or cucumbers are the way to go). Also, everything tastes better if you eat it with chopsticks, so don’t skimp!
***
That’s it, honeys! I usually have all of these ingredients on hand, so this is a common throw-together lunch in my household. This is also a great starter dish for anyone who is looking to cut a little bit of meat from his or her diet. It’s packed with protein (and probiotics if you add the nori). The above method of preparing tofu ensures a nice crisp on the outside that will have even the most adamant tofu naysayer begging for seconds.
Corn chowder is flipping delicious. Actually, you can put any creamy soup in a bowl, call it chowder, and I will love it, but that’s another issue entirely. #gordo
The only problem with this arguably perfect food is that it is often full of cream and butter, which in moderation are aces, but don’t exactly make for healthy nightly fare. Well, no more. I have created a chowder that is both vegan and made out of six vegetables!
All the veggies / who independent / throw your hands up at me!
I’m really sorry about that. Every time I’m passionate about something, I start helplessly paraphrasing Beyoncé. Six vegetables, though! Now are we getting the title? Where my AP Latin nerds at?
Anyway, here’s my foolproof corn chowder recipe!
Sex-y Corn Chowdah
4 cups corn kernels (fresh is best, frozen will do)
5 cups vegetable broth
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 ribs celery, chopped
1 large russet potato, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 large organic carrot, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup scallions, chopped (the green parts)
salt
black pepper to taste
1 tsp dried basil
juice of half a lemon
Some like it hot…for extra zazz, add 1/4 tsp. of cayenne pepper, or a tablespoon of pimenta moida in with the garlic. Highly recommend.
If using corn cobs: lightly grill or roast the cobs. Let cool and cut the kernels off the cob.
If using frozen corn: measure out 4 cups. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the kernels out, drizzle with olive oil and dust with salt. Roast at 400 degrees for a few minutes, until the kernels start to brown.
Heat the olive oil in a large pot and add the onion and celery. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt and stir. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Next add the carrot, bell pepper, and potato. Cook for another few minutes, adding black pepper and more salt if desired. Next, add the garlic, 3/4 of the corn, and dried basil. Stir and cook until the garlic becomes fragrant. Next, add the broth and let simmer for 10 minutes, or until the potato is fork tender. Remove the pot from heat and blend the soup with an immersion blender until creamy. Once blended, return the pot to low heat and add the lemon juice and the remaining 1/4 of the roasted corn. Simmer for a few more minutes to allow the flavors to combine. Turn off the heat and add the chopped scallions. Stir around and then taste to see if more lemon juice, salt, black pepper, or basil is needed. Serve immediately and top with more chopped scallions, shredded cheddar cheese, or sour cream if desired. Happy snacking!
**Recipe is loosely adapted from the Thug Kitchen Cookbook. Credit where credit is due!
So, I accidentally created the best dinner ever tonight. It started with a mashed potato craving, was facilitated by a bunch of produce I needed to use up, and resulted in heaven.
Sweet Heat Chickpeas
2 small beets, peeled & chopped
1 large zucchini, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 c. green cabbage, chopped
2 cans chickpeas, drained & rinsed
1/4 c. pimenta moida*, or red pepper flakes to taste
2 tbsp. avocado oil
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. paprika
salt & ground black pepper to taste
Vegan Mashed
4 russet potatoes, peeled & chopped
1/2 c. unsweetened organic almond milk (make sure it’s not vanilla!)
3 tbsp. Earth Balance
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper
salt & ground black pepper to taste
Preheat your oven to 400. If you have a Convection Roast setting, use it to get that roasty-toasty crunch.
To get the Mashed going, throw your chopped taters in a saucepan, cover them with cold water by about an inch, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer potatoes until fork tender.
For the Chickpeas, add all of the ingredients to a glass baking dish, toss to combine, and stick that mother in the oven. Remove and stir every 5-10 minutes, or as you notice the top of the dish browning. The liquid released from the zucchini will keep everything moist as its cooking, so you don’t really have to worry about anything drying out or burning. The chickpeas are done when the zucchini is soft and the beets are fork-tender (about 20 mins), but you can cook for up to an hour if you prefer more crunch.
While the chickpeas are cooking, drain your potatoes, add in your add-ins, and then mash until smooth. Don’t over-mash or they’ll turn to glue!
so much yum
When the chickpeas are done, give them a good stir, then plate and serve! If you’re like me, you’ll mix the mashed and the chickpeas and veggies into a food mountain on your plate. So delicious!
*A note on pimenta moida: I’ve never actually made this. You can (I assume) buy this at specialty Portuguese grocers. My mother-in-law is from the Azores, and she made an enormous batch of it in the spring and gave some to all the kids. Literally, this is how much pimenta I have:
full size pitcher of cold brew for reference
That thing was FULL just a few months ago. I could drink the stuff.
I hope this recipe helps you all take baby steps towards putting weird shit like beets and cabbage in your dinners! So into cabbage right now!
There is no food I love more than potatoes. Potatoes are the single greatest thing to ever grow out of the earth. Basically, you can do anything to a potato and it still tastes delicious.
One of my fave things to do to a potato is to make them breakfast-appropriate. We don’t eat your typical meat-and-potatoes diet (obviously), so incorporating my beloved potato into meals can be a tad difficult.
Thus, Lazy Sunday Hash was born! And yes, I’m making it on a Wednesday because I don’t abide by the rules of society. This recipe has the added bonus of minimal prep-time and effort!
hash with organic ketchup (for when you run out of eggs) Lazy Sunday Hash
serves 2 very hungry people, or up to 6 reasonable people
2 Russet potatoes, diced
1 handful of fresh organic green beans, chopped
1 handful of chopped scallions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 tbsp avocado or olive oil
2 tsp paprika
salt & black pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 350 (use that lovely roast setting if you’ve got it!)
Prep your veggies and put them all into a glass baking dish. Sprinkle on your spices. Toss in the avocado oil until well coated, and stick in the oven.
Slow-roast for an hour, removing and stirring every 15 minutes for even cooking.
**If you don’t have an hour to kill, set the cook temp higher and stir more frequently. The hash is done when the potatoes are fork-tender.
This hash is best-served underneath two over-easy eggs & a generous sprinkling of hot sauce!
Have you ever gotten an intense craving for peanut butter cookies in the middle of the night for no reason? Me too, I feel you.
But sometimes, all you have is the fancy-pants freshly-ground peanut butter, so it seems a shame to use it in cookies.
But sometimes, you have a jar of homemade almond butter that you processed with coconut oil and cocoa powder just sitting in the fridge waiting to be used! So, obviously, cookies must be made!
I was lucky enough to receive a pink KitchenAid stand mixer at my bridal shower last month, and these cookies were just the thing to christen it.
I love that homemade cookies always look a little bit wonky. Coconut Almond Butter Cookies
Makes 2-3 dozen, depending on how large you like your cookies
1 1/4 c cocoa almond butter (recipe below)
1/2 c coconut oil
1 1/4 c packed light brown sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
1 3/4 c whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 egg (or flax egg: 1 tsp flax meal mixed with 2 1/2 tsp of water)
Preheat the oven to 375. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. I use these!
In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment (or in a bowl with a fork if you’re a normal person), cream together the coconut oil, almond butter, brown sugar, almond milk, and vanilla extract until just combined. Slowly add in the rest of the ingredients and mix until just combined.
Scoop out the batter onto the parchment paper a tablespoon at a time. It will be very gooey, but the coconut oil will keep it from sticking. Once the cookie sheets are full, use a fork to make a crosshatched impression on the top of the cookies, because s’cute.
Bake for 8-10 minutes, rotating the trays halfway through cooking. I like to swap oven shelves at this time to make sure both trays cook evenly.
At (approximately) the 10-minute mark, remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let your cookies cool on a rack. They’ll still be a bit gooey, but don’t overcook them or they’ll turn to rocks. Gooey is good. Gooey means they’ll firm up to the perfect texture.
*Making the co-co-coconut almond butter:
Have you heard? Almond butter is the single easiest freaking thing on planet earth to make. It is the pet cat of foods—it requires minimal effort and doesn’t need any attention paid to it.
makes one lovely mason jar-full
3 c roasted, unsalted almonds
1 heaping tbsp cocoa powder (more if you love chocolate)
1 tbsp coconut oil
Put all the ingredients in a food processor and process on high for 20 minutes, scraping the sides intermittently if you need to. That’s it. The end result is a luscious, creamy heaven-sauce that tastes amazing on waffles, in yogurt, and in smoothies.
Enjoy these amazing (and healthy!) cookies this week!
I was lucky enough to go to my town’s farmer’s market this morning, and took home a huge haul of organic veggies! In the blind panic of holy-hell-I-have-way-too-many-zucchini, I decided to create a summer salad inspired by my love of all foods southwestern. It took under 20 minutes to put together and it might be the yummiest thing I’ve ever made!
What you’ll need:
for the salad
2 ears corn, husked with kernels cut off the cob
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 zucchini, diced
1/2 small red onion (or 1/4 large), finely chopped
1/2 lb of grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
salt & black pepper to taste
for the dressing
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp lemon juice (about 1/2 a large lemon)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp vegenaise (or mayonnaise if that’s your jam)
To begin, set your oven to 400 degrees (if you have a roast setting, use this!) Remove the kernels from the corn cobs, toss in a bowl with 1 tbsp coconut oil, and lightly season with salt & pepper. Roast in the oven in a baking dish for 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let cool.
While your corn is roasting, prepare your vegetables, rinse your beans, and combine it all in a large mixing bowl. When your corn is cool, add it to the vegetable mixture.
In a blender, food processor, or with an immersion blender, combine all of the dressing ingredients. Add salt to taste. Pour dressing into salad and toss to combine.
Serve on top of a bed of greens, on its own, or as a side with burritos or enchiladas! Top with avocado if you’re feeling frisky!
Della Bites 