Thursday Randoms - mostly food talk :)

Hi all :) Happy Thursday!! Hope your week is going good. I keep chanting in my head about how ready I am for FALL! I'm just REALLY tired of the heat. Not to mention, I can't hang in the sun anymore with this skin issue so I don't like being hot when I don't want to be. Logical huh?

This post is quite random but it is thing on my mind so it's what I'm posting

Yesterday, while in a doctor's office (yes, I was triyng a new doctor. She basically told me I need to find some miracle dermotologist probably in another town, great..) I came across this chandiler! I thought it was really unique! So, while waiting a few hours, I snapped a pic :/ I need a fun chandiler for my dinning room. It is the only fixture in the house we haven't replaced!


Akin's Natural Food is a store very similar to Whole Foods. Though, it is not quite as big. There really aren't NEAR as many store locations. There are a few in Oklahoma and a few in one or two other state. Sorry folks! However, the one by my office is expanding and now has MANY more items! I really like Whole Foods but it is in no way convient for me. It is across town. So, I'm going to Akin's a bit more often. I've seen things Whole Foods doesn't have & things they do...vice versa as well. Even if you don't have a Whole Foods close, check out a natural food store because they probably do have some same or similar things that you might be looking for!


I was so in shock of all the new things they had, I took these pics...they had two other cold sections along with this one... Some of the produce section..

You know, I've come across several blogs that post which items you should buy organic and which don't really matter. Well, I came across this article the other day on the Washington Post. It says that there really have not been enough studies to indicate that organic foods are making people healthier. Should we just encourage people to eat fruits and veggies versus recommending them to pick organics? I would really prefer NOT to comsume any pesticides. I do by some organic and some not. It really depends where I am and sometimes if something is on sale, I will stock up. I came across this article posted on the FDA's site about washing and pesticides coming off. This article on Martha's site is a good one. It tells you time in your life when you should aim to buy organics. It also tells you which items are most likely to have pesticides and which items are least likely to have pesticides. Check it out. This came to mind, because while at Akins, by the produce section, they had several sprays for removing pesticides off. Do they work? I have no idea. I'm willing to do some research though.

While at Akins, these were a few of my favorite things I bought yesterday..

Food Should Taste Good chips (website here)- Jessica first introduced me to these. I tried the tortilla ones and LOVED them. Yesterday, I bought the sweet potato ones and I love those too. They really are SO good and they are good for you! Well, as much as a chip can be :)
*No Gluten, no MSG, no perservatives, not gentically modified, cholestrol free, low sodium, trans fat free, lactose free, all natural , kosher, good source of dietary fiber
***You can sign up on the website and get a $1.00 of coupon! I printed 5. Not sure if they will each work, but we will see! HA!

Drew's All Natural Poppy Seed Dressing (website here) - It.Is.So.GOOD

Dominext Eggplant Parm Bites (website here- I am a HUGE eggplant parm fan. I get it when we are out to eat if the restaurant has it. I came across these in the frozen food section and they are ALL natural. They only have 30 calories per bite. Of course I tried them as soon as I got home. I loved them. Hubby even commented how good it smelled. I figure it is pretty healthy for a frozen finger food. Hey, at least we won't resort to pizza rolls or bagel bites as we have many a time.

Last night, hubby had steak and I had salad and cauliflower. Yes, I used the poppy seed dressing. It was delish! When Brent and I went to a cooking class back in January, we made a delicious baked cauliflower. Cauliflower is really good for you and by seasoning it up some, can be yummie. I couldn't find my recipe from the cooking class but I looked one up and made it. It was great and very similar to the one we had! A lot of people are creating things that make cauliflower seem similar to mashed potatoes. Yet, MUCH more healthy. I'm thinking of trying to do something like that soon. Here is what I did....

Before going in oven..
My husband is going to say dont post that picture..because it doesn't look good. Well, it may not but it SURE tasted good! Give it a try! I really should start using my camera and not my iphone. Sorry

This is the recipe I used. I found it a Epicurious.com.

Indrgedients
1 small head of cauliflower (about 1 3/4 pounds)
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons whole grain Dijon mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°F. Butter rimmed baking sheet. Cut cauliflower in half, then cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Arrange slices in single layer on prepared baking sheet; sprinkle with salt. Roast until cauliflower is slightly softened, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in lemon juice, mustard, and lemon peel.
Spoon mustard-lemon butter evenly over cauliflower and roast until crisp-tender, about 10 minutes longer. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. If desired, rewarm in 350°F oven until heated through, about 10 minutes.
Transfer cauliflower to platter. Sprinkle with parsley and serve warm or at room temperature.
Enjoy!

What should I make tonight? Decisions, decisions...

Tomorrow night we are going to dinner with a group of friends :) Our friend Jen is leaving for a vacation so we wanted to hang with her before! Saturday night, we will probably eat movie popcorn for dinner because we are going to see the Time Traveler's Wife, WAAAAHOOOO!! (Just kidding on the popcorn for dinner part, well maybe!)

Have a good day!!

xoxo ~ Megan