Lobster Mac and Cheese

This summer lobster mac and cheese has been all the rave on the food shows M and I have been watching on the Food Network and Travel Channel.  So....we finally made lobster mac and cheese Barefoot Contessa style.

You can't go wrong with butter, cheese, and lobster tails all in one dish.  Personally the nutmeg was a perfect addition to this side dish, which we cut in half, baked in one dish (opposed to Ina's suggestion of individual ramekins), and ate all week.  I highly, highly recommend you try this dish!

Back-to-School Cloth Napkins

This afternoon I whipped up these charming cloth napkins for my school lunchbox.  Yes, I am a teacher and yes, they complement my lime green lunch bag.  (My Mom will tell you - ever since I was in kindergarten I needed everything to match - from my rainbow belt to my undergarments to my shoes.  Some things never change.)

I used fabric scraps, so all my napkins are different size squares, but I am okay with that, I wanted to practice sewing mitered corners. The tutorial from Buddy and Buggy has step-by-step directions with pictures, making it super easy to follow; she gives you instructions for sewing napkins with or without mitered corners.  I can't wait to bring these to school, or should I say work!

Beet, Berry, and Almond Smoothie

 My picture does not do this smoothie justice. It's a deeper color in person.  Let's call it very-mixed-berry and it was yummy! 

I have a list of smoothies I want to sample, many of which are on my Na zdrowie Pinterest board (Pronounced: Naz-droh-vee-ay, which means cheers, or drink to your health in Polish.)

Since I had some steamed beets in the fridge, I thought I'd give this one a try.  I added 2 small steamed beets (cut in half), some frozen mixed berries, honey, milk, mint, and slivered almonds.  I eyeballed the ingredients, but here's a similar, more detailed recipe. 

Turmeric: Tea and Sore Throat Remedy

I've been learning about Ayurveda - the sister science of yoga - through my yoga classes, readings, and have been perusing some Ayurveda cookbooks from the local library. Turmeric is used in many Indian dishes and is an Ayurvedic ingredient.  One yoga instructor stated that turmeric is also very healing; turmeric is said to be anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and anti-viral, it may prevent Alzheimer's disease and some cancers. There are several studies and articles on this spice. Here's one. 

When I get a sore throat I usually gargle with salt water (thanks Mom) but I have also gargled with turmeric and salt (thanks to Pinterest).  For this Ayurvedic natural sore throat remedy you'll need: 1/2 cup of warm water, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon powdered turmeric.

In the last week, I have made a warming turmeric tea with fat-free milk several times. When mixed well, it has a lovely yellowish mustard hue. Turmeric IS the ingredient that makes our mustard yellow. The recipe suggests almond milk (I am sure that has some Ayurvedic benefit too, but I just used what we had in the fridge.)

For turmeric tea, you'll need:
1 cup milk - heated on the stove
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon honey

Heat the milk in a saucepan, stirring often so you do not burn the milk.  When the milk is hot enough for your liking, add the dry ingredients to the milk and mix well.  Transfer to a mug and add the honey. 

NOTE - If the milk is not hot enough, the spices will not be incorporated into a tea; instead, they will settle to the bottom leaving you with a strong mud-like concoction.