Month: August 2020

Posted in Recipes

Meatless Nuggets

Posted on by junebugphx

I have never been a big fan of the chicken nuggets, even if I did eat meat it’s just not one of those things I would really ever order out. When my son was little he was the chicken nugget fan. Well anything that had to do with chicken I knew it would be eaten in no time and he is still that way.

I was talking to him about how I was thinking of coming up with a good meatless nugget and he seemed excited so I did it and almost broke my arm patting my back they were so good.

Really, I used tofu and before I loose you please just hold on and read on…they really are good. I even got the thumbs up from my son.

They were crunchy with flavor, baked not fried so they are on the side of good for you too.

Meatless Nuggets Recipe:

1 package of extra firm Tofu drained and cut into nugget sizes

1/2 cup of Corn Starch or Potato Starch

1/4 cup of wheat flour

1/4 cup of Nutritional Yeast

Seasonings per your taste: paprika, garlic and onion powder, cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper

1 Egg

4 Tablespoons of water

The key to this crispy nuggets is to remove all the water from the tofu. To do this drain the tofu then wrap it in a towel putting weight on top for at least 15 minutes. I have found a nice cast-iron skillet with a few cans in it work great.

In a bowl add egg and water then whip them together making a egg wash

In another bowl add corn/potato starch, flour and seasonings

In the last and final bowl add the nutritional yeast.

I know the amount of dishes sound like way to much but it is worth it!

Take the drained, cut tofu rolling it in the nutritional yeast then dredge in the egg mixture, then put in corn/potato starch mixture making sure you cover it well. Place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Do this with each nugget. Place the full cookie sheet of nuggets in a preheated oven at 350 for about an hour turning flipping the nuggets at about 30 minutes.

Note: If you want extra crispy, spray the nuggets with olive oil before baking them and then again when you flip them. I didn’t do that this time but have noticed a slight difference with crispness.

When they are done place on a plate and serve with dipping sauce of your choice or even just plain works too, they are that good.

Posted in Uplifting

“It’s Forgiveness”

Posted on by junebugphx

I thought I had a handle on forgiveness, not perfect but I thought I had the basic thought down. I had forgiven those who had wronged me and moved on, or so it seemed. I had read some insightful books that really helped, spoken to very smart people that “specialize” in helping people “like me”. I have healed a lot, I could talk about memories of my past hurts and not want to cry or throw up. So I was taken back when I kept feeling the nudge ( thank you God) of no I haven’t truly forgiven someone who hurt me in my past, the one who hurt me the most.

I was given the kick in the pants that I need to really dig deep and it all came in the form of entertainment. I was watching Sex in the City the movie, yes I know but I wanted a “girl movie” and turned it on but I wasn’t expecting to get pearls of wisdom to come from it.

The part of the movie that spoke to me was the exchange between two of the characters Carrie and Miranda, both friends but Carrie felt that Miranda did her wrong by keeping something from her. They got so mad at each other they didn’t speak for a little while until Miranda couldn’t take it any longer. Maybe it was the split from her husband who had cheated on Miranda, making her need her friend more than needing to be right. She needed her forgiveness and wanted her friend back. She made the first move. She stopped by and had a chat with her friend. She wanted forgiveness from Carrie. Carrie was surprised Miranda was expecting such quick forgiveness from her when Miranda couldn’t even entertain the idea of forgiving her husband after time had passed. Miranda said that was different but Carrie responded “it’s forgiveness.” As those words were spoken I had a nudge in my heart and that’s when I knew I really hadn’t forgiven my (ex) husband, ouch!

Had I really just done lip service?

I had and new I need to do better, I didn’t need to keep this resentment going allowing him and the things he did in the past to continue to hurt me so that it stills the full joy of today.

Forgiveness is NOT Conditional. That is exactly what I had done, I had made a list of what I would allow myself to forgive on one side and the other side are the wrongs that will never be forgiven. I didn’t want to admit it but its true. I had put my husband and some of the wrongs in that never forgiving column without even realizing it but they can’t stay there “it’s forgiveness”.

“Forgiveness is unlocking the door to set someone free and realizing you were the prisoner.” unknown

Posted in Recipes

Summer Quinoa Salad

Posted on by junebugphx

I am sticking with the Summer recipe theme. If you have read some of my blog its no secret that Summer heat zaps my appetite. This year I even stopped planning my meals in the latter part of Summer when its just me and I have no one to cook for I am tempted to just have a smoothie or cold cereal.

So instead of giving in to my desier to be a couch potato and eat cold cereal I decided to make a cool Summer salad.

You can add change it up but the basic was good enough for me to want to share. I also made the dressing for this but you could also buy it already done if you desire.

Summer Quinoa Salad:

1 16 ounce can unsalted Chickpea drained and rinsed

1 cup of cooked Quinoa

2/3 cup of cut in half Kalamata Olive

1 medium Cucumber peeled and cut in bite size pieces

1 or 2 Tomatoes depending on size or hand full of cherry Tomatoes cut in half

Salt and Pepper per your taste

Feta Cheese crumbled on top if desired

Dressing:

(I did not measure so these are estimates)

4 cloves of Garlic diced

1/2 to 1 Teaspoon of dried Oregano

1 Tablespoon of Lemon juice

1 Tablespoon of Honey

1/4 cup of Greek Olive Oil

1 to 2 Teaspoons of a mustard

2 Teaspoons of Red Wine Vinegar

Fresh ground Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook quinoa per package directions. As quinoa is cooking drain and rinse chickpeas add to bowl, peel cucumber then cut it up as well as the olives and tomatoes adding them to the bowl with the chickpeas. After quinoa is done cooking let cool down some while you make the dressing.

After quinoa is about room temperature add to the bowl with the rest of ingredients, add dressing then top with Feta.

Do this ahead if you would like it cool. Taste great straight from the refrigerator.

Posted in Uplifting

The Future

Posted on by junebugphx
Littlest creature

I enjoy taking pictures of my flowers, not just for the beauty but I like to look at the growth that a picture can show that maybe with the naked eye you forget. Its funny how what is right in front of us can be over looked. We might not see the progress but its there.

We all like to notice the growth and changes but are we sometimes so fixated on them we don’t notice what’s in front of us?

I took the above picture to see the progress of my flowers but I was totally missing the best part of the picture until I looked closer. I looked at the picture and noticed the blurry bee so I looked at the flower and there it was happily doing what bees do. I got so excited that I didn’t miss the bee I started taking more pictures but this time of the bee and when I did that the flowers and bee both came into focuses.

How many times are we going through life so fixated on our growth, future, or goals that we forget to see the great things in our life at each moment. Growth and wanting a future are great but if its our only focuses it can lead to worry and missing out on some great things in the present. Looking to far head will do nothing but bring worry causing us to loose focuses and brings blurriness to the precious moments in our lives.

I love what Thich Nhat Hanh said “The best way to take care of the future is to take care of the present moment.”

Maybe if we take care of the present moment especially now, do what we need to do and enjoy the little things that are in each of our moments then we can let the future be left to the one who really has the control, and I’m so glad.

Proverbs 19:21

Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.

Posted in Uncategorized

Jackfruit BBQ

Posted on by junebugphx

I can’t believe this is the last real month of Summer. As a kid I thought Summer was the shortest season and always felt a disappointment when it came to an end. Yes I wasn’t one to look forward to school but it was more than that. It was the carefree days, warm weather, swimming, a change in what we had for dinner, vacations long or short, camping and I can’t forget the wonderful fun of going off to Summer Camp. I think I can still hear the shouts of happiness from my parents as the bus drove me away. To me the whole world seemed to come to a slower pace, maybe a more casual atmosphere.

Now, unfortunately I think that Summer is one of the longer seasons and can’t wait for the hot days to end but around February I start to wonder if maybe I was to hard on Summer and perhaps it gets a bum rap. I also start to long for a change in my recipes and look forward to BBQ.

So before Summer is gone for a time, I wanted to share a BBQ recipe.

Jackfruit is one of my favorite meat alternatives I have found for a BBQ Sandwich. It gives it a pulled pork flare and picks up the BBQ taste well. The internet is full of Jackfruit recipes so this might be like others you have seen and if so let me know so I can check them out and give them credit.

I was being lazy when I did this so go ahead and feel free to change it up or do it my lazy way and buy the sauce as well as the coleslaw.

Jackfruit BBQ Sandwich:

Hamburger Buns

Coleslaw

1 20 ounce can of Jackfruit (jackfruit in a bag can be used)

BBQ sauce

Diced onion and garlic per your taste

Olive Oil

Start by draining, washing and trimming the jackfruit. Think of a pineapple and how you cut out the center. With jackfruit you might wish to do the same, just trim the center of the jackfruit keeping the more shredded pieces but if you don’t mind it then go-ahead leave it in place and just make sure that it is drained, cleaned and patted dry. If using bag jackfruit skip this step.

Next in skillet add small amount of olive oil, diced onion and garlic. Sauté until translucent then add jackfruit and BBQ sauce covering the jackfruit. Turn down heat. Simmer on low for about 10 minutes.

Serve on a bun and if you prefer top with coleslaw and then enjoy!

Posted in Uplifting

Worry

Posted on by junebugphx
worry and my tomato plant

Worry, just the word can make you think of the things in your life that make you anxious or even stir up the uncertainty of the things going on in life that you have no control over. Maybe its my parents love of language/words in me but I find it amazing that the word worry is a noun and a verb. Now stick with me incase you are like me and forget a lot of what was taught in school.

A noun is a word (other than a pronoun) used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things.

And

A verb is used to describe an action, state, or occurrence.

Amazing isn’t! Worry is just a word but how many times do we put the action to it? We bring it to life then wonder why our life has so much anxiety. Why we cant sleep at night and find it hard to laugh at things in our life that we usually find amusing. From worrying about what to wear for an interview, the economy, sickness, family…..I could go on and fill up this page and I am sure you can add a lot too. Worry zaps the life out of us but it only can if we give life to the worry, if we give that action to that thought.

I can worry and that is what bought me to writing about this, I have written about it (check out old post) so you would think I might have a handle on it but just like you I give life to worry because lets face it, worry is a control issue. We try to control what we cant and even worry about what we can, just for good measure.

As I was sitting on my back patio watching the first rays of light. I was praying about some of my worries. One of my favorite passages in the Bible on this topic is Matthew 6:25 – 34

Matthew 6:25-34 25“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you-you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Can I get a Amen? Said so well I could end it here but as I was thinking this and looked it up on my phone I glanced over at my tomato plant getting so tall and doing what it should do. It’s growing, blossoming and getting tomatoes. It doesn’t worry about the pest that I am trying to fight off so it can grow and give me fruit ( yep I said fruit) it just grows. It doesn’t worry if I will water it or what will happen when the weather gets cold. All it does is do what it was meant to do.

When worry starts, how about we don’t give it action, but instead how about letting God be God so we can just be who we were meant to be. We can dream our dreams and live a wonderful life that we have been given to live.

Posted in Recipes

Cucumber Spread

Posted on by junebugphx

Summer time is great for eating fast fresh foods, but at times you can get stuck in a rut or maybe to hot to eat. That was me I wanted to make my chilled cucumber soup (check out previous blog post for the recipe) but my buttermilk went past a few days on the best by date and I am not one to really venture past that date when it comes to dairy.

I had a lot of cucumbers and still wanted something cool/fresh but still light so I came up with this cucumber spread and thought I would share. The list of ingredients are short, not pricy and this is something you can do ahead of time. Have for lunch or a light dinner like I did.

Yes, a lot of people have cucumber sandwiches and I love to try all sorts of variations too so this falls in with that.

Cucumber Spread Recipe:

2 small or 1 medium cucumber pealed and diced

12 ounce soft cream cheese (I didn’t use the full 12oz more like 8oz but that’s up to you)

Fresh Dill and Chives to taste

Salt and Pepper to taste

Add cream cheese to diced cucumber then dice or cut dill and chives adding the amount per your taste then salt and pepper and yes that’s it!

I know it sounds like its not really anything but its great and you should really give it a go. You can use on your favorite bread or bagel. Have the spread plane or you may also want to add sliced tomato an avocado or really any toping that sounds good.