Tofu in your Tacos

Tofu-. I'm not a vegetarian, but I definitely like vegetarian dishes from time to time. When I can get a large amount of tofu on sale- this is a dish I like to make.

First you need to marinate the tofu. Open your package and drain the water. Slice the tofu into 1/2" thick pieces. Lay the slices on paper towels to drain for about 10-15 minutes. Then set all of your tofu slices into a large baking dish. (Just to marinate). I eyeball the recipe. Sorry! That's just the way I cook. Typically, unless you have a lot of tofu, the following will be plenty. The type of tofu that works best is Organic Firm.

Marinade
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 Cup Bragg's liquid Aminos (or Soy Sauce)
2 T. Raw Sugar
1 Tsp. ground Ginger
2 Tsp. ground Garlic

Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl. Pour over your tofu. If there doesn't seem to be enough, make another batch. What I usually do is prep this item first. While I'm making the rest of my meal I agitate the baking dish every 10 minutes. (Let tofu soak for an hour at least). I grill my tofu first on my Foreman grill to cook off the rest of the water and make it -a little crunchy. Now I usually make one meal with the tofu this way, and then Tacos on the second day with the leftovers.

 

Basically you are just substituting your tofu for ground beef, turkey etc. I take my leftover tofu out of the fridge and dice it into bit-sized pieces. Put all of the pieces into a small pot and add about 1/4 cup water. Then shake Taco seasonings over the tofu and cook on med. I use a packet or pre-mixed Taco Seasonings. I don't like to use too much, so I shake to taste. Cook until mixture simmers. Prepare all of the other fixings for tacos and use the tofu in place of meat. My kids just love it!

Pumpkin Pie: With a real Pumpkin!

My son really wanted a pumpkin pie, made from a real pumpkin. I wanted to just open a can. Easy right!
I decided to acquiesce, and we picked out a smallish pumpkin at our local stand.

The entire exercise turned out to be quite fun. We cut off the top and the kids helped me scoop out all the seeds. Then I carefully, while sitting on the floor, cut off big slices of the pumpkin. I pared off the outer skin and put all the cut chunks into a crock pot.

I let the pumpkin cook about 4 hours on low. It was very soft, and I mashed it by hand. The color was so light. I thought- why is pumpkin so dark in the can? Maybe the preservatives.

The rest was very easy! I like to make my own version of recipes, so the one below is adapted from one I found. Also, I am an 'eyeball' cook. So I may approximate some of the measurements. If you are an exact cook, you'll find my recipes a little frustrating. Sorry!

PIE CRUST:
Melt 1/2 a stick of butter in a saucepan. Add a pinch of salt, and 2 pinches of raw sugar. To make things easy, I added the flour right to the saucepan. I used about 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour, and about 1/2 cup of cold water. Stir the mixture. Mine was a little wet, so I added some more flour, until it became the correct consistency. (Don't stir too long). Immediately I moved the dough to a pie plate.
I don't even roll out my crust half the time. I use a fork and press the dough all around, and then finish with my fingers, trying to make it even as possible.

This is a quick and easy way to make a pie crust. You can spray the pan, but I found the butter keeps the crust from sticking.

SET ASIDE.

PUMPKIN PIE:

Ingredients:
2 cups of the masked pumpkin
3/4 cup raw sugar
1/4 cup apple butter
Pinch of clove
2 pinches of ginger
1/2 cup milk (Now if your pumpkin seems too wet, use less milk)
2 egg yolks
2 stiffly beaten egg whites

Mix all the ingredients together. Then beat your egg whites until stiff. Once stiff, add to the rest of the mixture. Stir well. Pour onto the pie dough. Cook in a preheated oven (425) for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350 and cook approximately 45 more minutes. This second time varies, depending on how thick your mixture was. You should check your pie around 30-35 and keep an eye on it until it seems set.

Remove from oven, and cool. Serve with homemade whipped cream! OH Yeah- bake the Pumpkin Seeds you saved. That recipe will be in the next blog.

Young Living's Super B Formula

www.youngliving.org/essenceofoil

For quite a while I was sort of a vegetarian. I didn't eat dairy, and tried to focus on Fruits, Vegetables, Whole grains, Nuts, Seeds and Legumes. I would eat meat sparingly. So, I couldn't call myself a vegetarian, but I tried to eat as much live food as possible. One supplement I really tried to stay on top of was my B' vitamins. I use to use the herb Catnip, which has a good array of the needed B vitamins. I found the herb to be especially relaxing for my nervous system. Later on, I found Young Living and their Super B formula. This is a more complete supplement and has the full spectrum of B vitamins. The difference with this, over catnip- is that Super B helps increase engergy, and supports mood. So if I need to fall asleep- I'll drink my tea with Catnip, but if I'm feeling really low on energy- like when I'm pregnant :)- I'll take my Super B that day.

 

STRESS- and Young Living Essential Oils

www.youngliving.org/essenceofoil

My new favorite blend. The Young living description for this oil is as follows "The emotional trauma from accidents, death of loved ones, assault, abuse, etc. can implant its devastation deep within the hidden recesses of the mind, causing life-long problems that seem endless. Being able to release such burdens can bring about a new 'lease on life' with a return to motivation and vitality. This blend combats stress and uproots trauma that cause insomnia, anger, restlessness, and a weakened immune response."

Sounds great- right! It is! I am not afraid to admit that I have a lot on my plate, and stress is often looming around the corner. Insomnia, and restlessness are definite obstacles to overcome. All Young Living oils are so amazing- but Trauma Life has been absolutely miraculous for improving my moods, and helping me calm down. When stressed, I apply on different pressure points, and also breath in deeply from the open bottle. An hour or 2 will go by and I realize I'm in a better mood. It happens almost subconsciously and truly is amazing!




Frankincense (Boswellia carteri), sandalwood (Santalum album), valerian (Valeriana officinalis), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), davana (Artemisia pallens), spruce (Picea mariana), geranium (Pelargonium graveolens), helichrysum (Helichrysum italicum), citrus hystrix, and rose (Rosa damascena)

New Webpage

For those of you following Sheephillherbs.com- this webpage is our new home. We've decided to just have this blog for now. Hope you will visit often, and leave your comments. Thanks so much, and happy herbal hunting!

When Sickness Strikes- That sounds Awful!

"No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it."
1 Corinthians 10:12-14

I was reminded of this scripture repeatedly the last week. For some reason, I guess because I work with herbs, I think I can reach this state of permanent immunity to illness. Every year, or each time I get sick, I make this silent vow to try harder, eat better, exercise more, sleep more, pray more, learn more herbs- whatever, so that I can never get sick again.

Every time I fail. I wind up coming down with something. Now it isn't every time something goes around. However, there will inevitably be some bug that my system isn't immune to, and I go through the inevitable frailty of the human flesh.

In a state of pain, discomfort, or distress... the mind is exceedingly tempted to complain and doubt the promises of God. But I had to remind myself that God does not allow us to be tempted more than we are able to bear. Sometimes it seems that he brings us to the very brink of what we can bear- then over the horizon is hope and relief.

Thank you Father for your son. He is faithful. I know you are working in my life.

LYNAYS.Net 'Love Your Neighbor As Yourself'

Check out my good friend's blog page. They are wonderful writers, and live such interesting lives. Blessed our those who know Mike and Grace.

www.lynays.net

Contest for one of My Favorite Companies

This Package is part of Mountain Rose Herbs Best Recipes of 2011 Giveaway!

Click the link at the bottom of this entry to see how you can enter the giveaway and possible receive this awesome gift!

One recipe example:

Natural Lemon Furniture Polish
• 16 oz spray bottle
• 1 cup olive oil
• 25 drops pure lemon essential oil
• 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
• fill remainder of the bottle with purified water
Shake well before each use. Spray onto your rag or directly onto furniture. Buff dry immediately.

This week’s prize will allow you to formulate all of these natural cleansers throughout the spring and well beyond! We’re also throwing in a copy of Naturally Clean Home by Karyn Siegel-Maier so you’ll have even more herbal cleaning recipes for everything from the grill, to silver rings, wicker chairs, and your computer keyboard!

Here’s this week’s BIG prize...

16oz Organic Liquid Castille Soap16oz Organic Vegetable Glycerine16oz Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4oz Organic Lavender hydrosol4oz Organic Rosemary hydrosol
1/2oz Organic Lemon Essential Oil
1/2oz Organic Ginger Essential Oil1/2oz Organic Lavender (Spike) Essential Oil1/2oz Organic Lemongrass Essential Oil
1/2oz Organic Sweet Orange Essential Oil1/2oz Organic Oregano Essential Oil1/2oz Organic Peppermint Essential Oil1/2oz Organic Rosemary Essential Oil1/2oz Organic Tea Tree Essential Oil2lb Baking Soda4 ~ 16oz Spray Bottles
The Naturally Clean Home

http://mountainroseblog.com/category/contests/