just keep swimming.

i am not the type of person that goes broadcasting when i have bad days. usually, only those people really close to me are "privileged" enough to see that side of me. everyone else just sees the happy, smiling, bubbly person.
(today was a not-so-fantastic day)
just one of those days that you muddle through. 
one of those days when nothing feels good.
one of those days when you feel stuck. and unproductive...
one of those days that your bed is the only place in the whole wide world that you want to go, and yet it is the last place that you can be. because you are running in about a gajillion other directions. (yup. that was me today.)


so, in honor of those no-so-stellar days: 
http://youtu.be/gH476CxJxfg

i have a new obsession.
now i just have to figure out how to make them. (and possibly learn how to knit in the process...)


i am super ready for fall baking!!!
i love the smells, the tastes, the colors... pretty much everything except for the wind. (i can actually handle the cold. even in a wasteland such as rexburg. it's just the cold. i swear it seeps into your very soul...)
here is a perfect (and potentially healthy) snack to get you into the fall mood:

{yum.}

{Pumpkin Pie Dip} (from skinnytaste.com via pinterest)

• 15 oz can pumpkin
• 3/4 cup brown sugar (Splenda would work too)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or more to taste)
• 6 oz fat free Greek yogurt
• 8 oz cool whip free
• cut up apples to dip (extra points)

Mix pumpkin with brown sugar, vanilla and spices, blend well. Mix in yogurt. Fold in cool whip and chill in refrigerator until ready to eat.
Makes about 6 cups.

tomorrow's gonna be a good one.
i can just feel it. :)

***
May you live all the days of your life.
Jonathan Swift

worst week ever invented.

who thought of finals week anyway?
the should be drug through the streets, whipped, and then flogged.
what's that? i sound barbaric?
oh really?
i am so ready for this week to be over though.
you know that feeling you get, when you are ready for something to be over, and you are ready to move on? yeah, it's like senioritis. but instead of just being done with high school, i get to go on a fantastic trip. but that trip can only happen after i make it through this week. so it bugs me that it is taking so long.
as you can tell, i have a lot to work on when it comes to patience. (or maybe it's just the fact that this is the adventure of a lifetime... and i might just be a little bit excited to go. just maybe.)
21 days.
did you hear that? 21 DAYS! :D
and now i'm starting to stress out.
i like stressing out.
i function best when there is a little tension in my life... if there wasn't, i would probably sit on my butt all the time and... i'm gonna stop there. (cuz it is sounding way too representative of the past few weeks of my life.)
this is where i am going to be.
oh be jealous.

soon. real soon. i am actually going to be able to take a picture all for myself.

(and i might just decide to share with you all!)

my next question: what should i buy? where should i go??? i don't want to miss anything - so i need help! 

that should have contained a disclaimer... my "question" usually turns to many questions... 

and i have to buy a new camera.

since the old one has run away. i really have no idea where it would even be. not even remotely.

yeahhhhh. at this point i do not like spending money. especially when it should be spent after my trip starts... not before! poo.

so i have some zucchini in my fridge right now. and i need to do something with it.

now, if you knew anything about my life at home, you would understand that the "zucchini" i am referring to in my fridge is a shame to its name. my first semester up at school, my mom sent me a zucchini that was probably the size of my thigh. no, i am dead serious. my roommate, a girl from california that i'm pretty sure had never seen produce anywhere other than a supermarket, couldn't believe it.  

i swear these things are on steroids.
we have to get very creative with out zucchini at home, so luckily, i have several go-to recipes for zucchini bread that i can go to in a pinch. but i found this recipe the other day, and it looked fairly interesting. i might just have to try this one. 


stuffed zucchini (from kayotic kitchen)

ingredients:
1 tbsp sour cream
1/4 to 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp curry powder
1/2 tomato
1 tsp thyme
2 zucchinis
1 onion
cheese
pepper
optional: bacon


directions:
preheat your oven to 400 (200C).
give the zucchini a good scrub.
slice them in half length-ways. you can trim the ends if you like. 
spoon out the guts. just take it out (leave about 1/2 an inch in) until you end up with boat like shells.
now give the zucchini pulp a good chop, also chop a small onion and 1/2 a tomato while you’re at it. i’m only using half a tomato (more for color than flavor, really) otherwise things will become a teeny bit too fluid. having everything gush out of your zucchini is not a pretty sight, trust me!
sautee the onions in one tbsp oil or butter. it’s ok for them to brown a little this time ’round.
when the onions are almost done, add 1/4 tsp curry powder and cook everything for an additional 30 seconds. no longer or the curry powder will turn bitter. when they’re done, transfer them to a big bowl.
now this is completely optional. if you want to stick with a vegetable dish, fine, just leave the bacon out. (the bacon will give it a little more crunch and saltiness, so you can cook a few slices and let them drain on a paper towel.)
now (in no particular order), add 1 tsp dried thyme, 1/4 to 1/2 tsp salt, 1 heaping tbsp sour cream, a good pinch of pepper, the zucchini pulp, the tomato and crumble the bacon in as well.
lightly butter a baking dish and put the zucchini boats in. they’re best served straight out of the oven. 
grab a spoon and fill the shells with the mix. sprinkle some aged cheese on top.
put them in a preheated oven, give them about 20 minutes and then turn on the grill until the top is golden brown. sprinkle some coarsely chopped curly leaf parsley (the most underrated herb there is) on top and you’re done!


if you grew up and used an easy-bake oven like me... you might find this interesting. and kind of sad. 

only one more day til freedom!

stay sane til then! (for me.)

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i am grateful that my computer decided to act up

today

and not while i am in jerusalem.

(not much to be grateful for... but at least it's somethin!)

i miss summer.

anyone else get sick of canned soup?

i know that i have a cupboard full... and i have still not used a single one this whole semester.

i mean, they are good in a jam, but really? when you can cook something so much tastier??? why stoop to that level?!

i splurged and bought some real tomatoes from the store the other day, because i was craving tomato soup.

not from a can.

my mom got this recipe from an old lady that came to work last summer, and it very quickly became one of our favorites!

imagine (if you can) a tomato plant that threatens to take over the rest of the garden... and the bushels of tomatoes that we have sitting in the garage for weeks after we harvest them all. [this also means weeks of canning salsa, tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce... and when that's done, guess what?! we get to move on to more canning! goody...]

but seriously.

i am sooooo grateful for that food right now.

because if it wasn't for that, i would be eating ramen.

gross.

so my mom got this recipe, and then after we had made it only once - lost it!

can you believe her???

the nerve!

but my mom is amazing and remembered most of the recipe. so we duplicated it fairly well until she managed to find the recipe. i did finally manage to forgive her. ;)

like i said, this recipe is amazing.

my dad (the i-don't-like-tomatoes-or-any-kind-of-veggie-save-cucumbers guy even liked it. it's the truth!) that's gotta mean somethin big.

tomato basil soup

28-oz can (3 cups) whole tomatoes, drained, reserving liquid

or 3 cups of fresh tomatoes

4 slices bacon, diced

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1/2 cup (1 medium) finely chopped carrot

3 tablespoons flour or 4 teaspoons cornstarch

1/4 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp white pepper

1 3/4 cups vegetable broth or 14 1/2-oz can less salt chicken broth

finely chop tomatoes; set aside.

in large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp. remove; set aside.

drain bacon drippings, reserving 1 tbsp.

cook onion and carrot in reserved bacon drippings until tender.

stir in flour, paprika and white pepper.

cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.

gradually stir in vegetable broth and reserved tomato liquid.

bring to a boil.

reduce heat; add bacon and tomatoes.

simmer 10 minutes.

(we usually add the bacon last... after we blend the rest of the soup together, with the tomatoes. i like it chunky... but for picky siblings blending usually is the best option...)

basil cream

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp basil leaves

1/3 cup dairy sour cream

in a small bowl, combine basil and sour cream.

"ladle soup into warmed serving bowls. gently spoon 1 heaping tablespoon basil cream into middle of each bowl."

wow... that is a lot more effort than i like to put into any meal! a warmed serving dish? i am lazy! you can go ahead with your cold bowl right here...

5 (1-cup) servings.

try me! (this is the soup speaking...)

you won't be disappointed.

this makes me want summer real bad.

i want to move to a place where i can have a garden alllll the time. no joke.

maybe i'll just make a greenhouse inside my house.

watch it. it's gonna happen!

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yay for a full (and healthy-feeling) tummy!