Summer Foods

I have to talk about food here for a little bit because it is one of my favorite things to talk about. I have been making a lot of salads this summer, and have been really enjoying myself. Especially the Guacamole salad that completely rocked my world. I am drooling a little while writing about it. I mean, how can it not be amazing when it is full of avocado and black beans? And speaking of avocado, the salad that I mentioned before, Popeye goes to India, is unbelievable. UN-freaking- believable. I don't eat a lot of lettuce and veggie salads because sometimes they are just so blah, but holy shit, this salad had so much flavor in it that my taste buds screamed with unbridled passion. Seriously. I am eating some for lunch today.

This salad is made with baby spinach, diced avocado, flax seed oil (which I can't even find, so I used olive oil), nutritional yeast, curry powder, a bit of salt, and ground up sesame seeds. I didn't have any of the seeds, but I will try that next time. I will never look at salads the same way.

I am going camping this weekend with the family, and I am really excited. I love making lists and packing and getting ready for things like this. Today I am going to make a batch of homemade granola to bring with for breakfast. I am also going to make a Mexican pasta salad that I love, this time with the large Israeli couscous, because it feels so cool on my tongue. I am also going to make a batch of raw treats - something I love to make called Almond Joy Bars. I simply grind up some dates, almonds, carob (or cocoa) powder, a splash of water, and coconut in a food processor. I press the mixture into a pan and refrigerate. When I eat these things I feel like I am being really naughty and eating a candy bar, but in reality it's very healthy. Everyone else will be grilling some sort of dead animal to eat, but I will be eating a veggie Italian sausage that I bought yesterday. And plenty of fresh fruit, because life wouldn't be worth living without it.

The place we are going camping has trails for walking and a beach. We are taking the dog with us, and I am looking forward to swimming in the water, playing in the sand with the kids, visiting with our friends, and enjoying a bit of nature before summer comes to screeching halt in about two weeks. I will be taking pictures, so look for them on Facebook next week.