Happy Monday All!! Did everyone spring forward? It’s difficult to lose an hour of sleep, but I am so happy to see brighter, sunnier days ahead! The temperature is getting a bit warmer and I’m re-inspired to cook lighter fare and garden again soon, and spend more time outdoors again!! Spring is my favorite season, especially late spring/early summer!! I am ready for Spring and Easter and flowers blooming again! How about all of you?

My husband, Paul and I have been renovating our kitchen and along with our son, have been eating healthier foods. One of the recipes from the Blue Zone Diet is a mediterranean grain bowl & it was so delish!! Look for the recipe below! It has a yummy tahini herb sauce to drizzle on top that is just delightful!

This past weekend we celebrated our dog Bella’s birthday with our daughter and her boyfriend with a lovely breakfast and presents for Bella! She had so much fun!! It’s always so sweet to see her so happy with everyone together and celebrating her!! Adorable!! 🐾🐾❤️

We started a new wall area in the kitchen this weekend and it’s so nice to see the transformation start to unfold! When it’s all finished, we’ll post a link to YouTube and post a few pictures!! Is anyone else doing any renovating?

We’re supposed to have a lovely week, weather-wise here in New England and I plan on some more walks to take in the fresh air! Hope you all have a wonderful week and get to enjoy the great outdoors!! Days away from the first day of Spring!! 😀🎍🌼

Mediterranean Grain Bowl Recipe:

Ingredients:

4 cups of fresh kale

juice from half a lemon

4 small to medium sweet potatoes, chopped small, keep skin on

extra virgin olive oil

1 can organic chickpeas, drained, rinsed

1/2 tsp each of turmeric, coriander and cumin

1/4 tsp each of paprika and garlic powder

2 cups uncooked quinoa, rinsed & drained

1 cup water

2 cups organic vegetable broth

1/4 tsp turmeric

sea salt to taste

a couple pinches of ground black pepper

tahini herb sauce, to taste (recipe to follow this one)

Directions:

1. De stem the kale. Rinse and drain, pat dry. Place in a bowl with the lemon and some sea salt. Massage the kale and work into the kale, mixing together with your hands to soften the kale. Squeezing every so often. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 375° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Spread the chopped sweet potatoes on baking sheet and drizzle olive oil & sprinkle sea salt to taste over it.
4. Place the cleaned chickpeas in a small bowl and season with turmeric, coriander, cumin, paprika and garlic powder. Stir it all together and spread on other half of baking sheet in a single layer. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. After that 15 minutes, flip potatoes over and shift chickpeas around and cook again for another 15 minutes.
5. While the sweet potatoes and chickpeas are roasting, cook the quinoa. Thoroughly rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh sieve and drain. Heat a pan on medium/high heat for a few seconds then place the quinoa in pan and stir around in pan dry for about 3 minutes to bring out the nutty flavor of the quinoa. Then add water, vegetable broth, turmeric, black pepper, and some sea salt to taste. Bring to a simmer over medium/high heat. After it begins to bubble, reduce heat to medium and place a lid on pan. Cook for 20 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the quinoa is light and fluffy. When done, take quinoa off heat and fluff with a fork.
6. Begin to assemble your bowl. Using a shallow bowl, place your kale at bottom of bowl, then top with quinoa. Add chickpeas and sweet potatoes. Top with Tahini herb sauce. * You can top with sunflower seeds and chopped fresh dill if you wish.

Tahini Herb Sauce: *

1 cup Tahini

2 garlic cloves, minced

juice of 1 large lemon

1 cup almond milk

1/4 cup dried dill

sea salt to taste

• mix all ingredients together with a spoon. To smooth out, if tahini is too pasty, thick or dried out , use an immersion blender to smooth out.