Brussels Sprouts Soup

This is all that is left of my brussels sprouts soup. I had a package of frozen brussels sprouts and made a soup out of it. I sauteed some onions, added the sprouts, a teaspoon of dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper and a box of low sodium chicken stock to the pot. After simmering for half an hour, I mashed the softened sprouts with a potato masher. It was delicious, healthy and low carb.

I have a food processor, but it seemed easier to mash the vegetables manually.  They retained a bit of texture this way too.

Happy last day of February!

A new face - ten dollar bill

I noticed that we have a ten dollar bill with a new face, that of Viola Desmond.  She is Canada's Rosa Parks.   It is the first time a Canadian woman has appeared on Canadian currency.  Desmond was a cosmetics pioneer for black women and ran a succesful business.  In 1946 she entered a segregated movie theatre and was asked to move from a good seat.  She refused and was jailed.  You can read about this here.  

cardboard straw

cardboard straw

garden salad

prime rib

We went out for a nice steak dinner this past weekend. I had been feeling tired for days and thought I could use some iron. It is interesting that the restaurant is now serving drinks with cardboard straws. I heard that one restaurant is using pasta strands as straws (penne?).

Vegetarians and Iron

eggplant art

If you are thinking of becoming vegetarian (I  am not), you have to ensure that you are getting enough iron in your diet.  I learned that there are 2 types of iron, heme and non-heme.  Heme is the readily absorbed iron in meats and fish. Non-heme iron is found in legumes and some vegetables.  Non-heme iron is not readily absorbed by the body.  You need to eat the non-heme foods with citrus and other vitamin C foods which help greatly in the absorption of iron.  Here is a good article you might want to read concerning this topic.

Mushrooms and Peppers

Mushrooms are on sale this week so I decided to roast some with peppers:

2 227g packages of white mushrooms, cut in half
3 or 4 red peppers sliced
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
3 or 4 tbs olive oil
3 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 tbs white sugar
1 tsp dried basil
1 clove of garlic minced
1 onion chopped
1 tomato chopped

pre heat the oven to 350F

mix all ingredients together on a tray lined with parchment paper
bake for about 20 minutes.

Fruit Salad

Here is my colourful fruit salad for you today, 2 servings of fruit.

Ivy was telling me that there seems to be a trend on the west coast (California, Vancouver) to go vegetarian.  In fact, one of my nieces in California has roommates who are vegetarian, they make wonderful vegetarian meals that they share with each other.  My sister thinks the trend is due to a desire to save/preserve our environment.

Paint Party Friday - Seascape ACEO

Welcome to Eva and Kristin's Paint Party Friday! I did an ACEO Seascape on canvas (2 1/2" x 3 1/2") for you today. It is done with permanent markers and Sharpie oil paint white marker.