Fire it up!

roasted mushroom

We sure had a full house on vacation and a lot friends and family brought me veggies from their garden! Lots of tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant and fresh herbs! (my sister-in-law had a great garden this year)
Potatoes(my mother-in-law has a HUGE and very impressive garden) green beans. We ate lots of veggies! And slow cooked them all on the grill!

The mushrooms were a big hit. And they are super easy.

Clean and cut up your mushrooms along with some chopped onion and garlic. Add salt/pepper and a little olive oil and some butter (earth's balance for my vegan friends). Slow roast them and stir them up once and a while. Mmmm good.

I'm Baaack...

And ready to attack! I'm happy to be home and looking forward to a lot of new changes coming up. Feels good to be back into my routine. It's great to get away and spend time with friends and family but there is no place like home.

I don't know if I told you this but my weakness is chips! Yes, potato chips. Love them. Lets just say I had a chip overload the last two weeks. What did I wash them down with? Beer. Yes, we did A-LOT of entertaining on vacation. I worked out a bit and ate well but the chips and beer got the best of me. Today was my first day back at the gym and I got on the scale, assuming I did some damage. And you know what?? I didn't. For the first time in my life I went on vacation and didn't come back 5 lbs heavier. I managed to enjoy myself and indulge while keeping a healthy balance.

It's not what you do every once in a while; it's what you do every day that matters in the long run. The holidays are around the corner and you should should eat, drink and be merry! I'm not saying go bonkers and eat a whole tin of holiday cookies but make an effort to find that balance.

Buying Local

I am still on vacation in Maine and loving it! The weather is gorgeous and the air is so fresh and clean! I keep driving past this seafood and farm stand on my way to the gym and today I decided to stop by and so glad that I did. The owner Roberta was amazing! She's about as sweet as the come. She took me out back and walked me through her garden and chatted about her life a bit. Did you ever meet someone that made an instant impression? (in a good way) Roberta did just that. I don't think she always had an easy breezy life but she seemed  so happy and content. I think we could all learn a little from Roberta. I picked up some onion, garlic, real maine maple syrup, celery, corn and broccoli for $15.00. Buy local people! Find out where your Farmers markets are in your area and go once a week and stock up on your fruits and veggies! Local farmers need your support! 

Eggplant 

Roberta

Broccoli

Pepper

Inside Roberta's store

Corn

Homemade jam

Corn on the Grill

Hope everyones safe and sound from Irene. As you know, I'm in Maine on vacation and we had some bad wind and weather for about two days and lost power for 24 hours. But we are now back up and running.

We had lots of friends and family over last week and my Sister-in-laws boyfriend Jim is the man on the grill. We picked up some local corn on the cob and Jim grilled  up a feast for us! The corn on the grill was a big hit!

Corn on the Grill:
Whatever amount of corn you need.
Butter or Earth Balance Spread
Aluminium Foil
Salt/Pepper

Pull down the husk from the corn without pulling it completely off. Leave husk on the bottom.
Rub with butter spread and salt/ pepper.
Place husk back on the cob.
Wrap in foil.
Cook on the grill for about 15-25 minutes.

Pull back husk

Spread butter and wrap in foil

Cook on the grill

Unwrap to eat.

And enjoy! 

Maine or Bust!

Photo Source: My Father-in-law

I'm on vacation! The pic above is from our deck. The air is so fresh and clean! Trying my hardest to eat clean and not drink too much! But I found a nice gym close by and running in the AM is also very meditating. Wed my Sister-in-law will take me to the Farmers Market. And I already found some hand picked wild blueberries. Buy local! Support your local farmers!

We Have a Winner!

Congrats to Aloha Molly! For winning Wildly Affordable Organic. Eat Fabulous Food, Get Healthy, and Save the Planet. All on $5.00 a Day.

Way to go Molly!

Doing something Good

My wonderful friend Wicki is involved in something great called http://www.justshea.com/ Just Shea is helping the 600,000 women who harvest shea in Ghana. Today Global Giving is having a fundraiser on-line today and all the funds raised today are matched .

It feels good to give big or small.  http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/protect-30000-womens-lives-in-ghana-now-join-us/