Drink the Kool-Aid & Vote for Me!

So I just entered a picture of the animal I like to call Coyote Pretty in this Share the Experience photo contest -- take a look and vote for me! After all we've been through on this road trip, doesn't the Subaru deserve a little maintenance cash? I took her to the dealership four times this week. C'mon. Do it for the vehicular children.

Coyote Pretty

As for the Kool-Aid thing, ok, it's not really Kool-Aid, but it's much better! Today I made an orange-lime-cucumber-lemon infused water because I read it flushes fat and with a full pork shoulder in the crock this weekend lord knows I could use it. But after a sip or two I thought, you know what would make this a million times better? Soda-ifying it. Or, as a Washington resident now, should I be saying pop-ify? So I revved up the Sodastream, topped off the fruit water and boom, now it's like a cross between lemon water and orange soda. I'm pretty pleased with myself.

For a quick recap of other kitchen creations, because I'm sure you're dying to know...

We got some beets at the farmers market. I cooked them for almost an hour, sauteed the greens separately with a chopped onion, tossed it altogether with a little balsamic and a little goat cheese. It was very minimally dressed and the flavors were amazing. I'd never had beet greens before, but now I'll never throw them out again.

As for that aforementioned pork, ugh, I hate how disgustingly good it came out. A full 10 hours in the crock pot with a little garlic, onion and chicken broth and out comes tender, juicy perfeection. Luckily Rob froze the remainder before we went too bananas with it. But not before soft tacos with mango-avocado-black bean salsa and a sandwich with cheddar-jack and avocado on fresh Pugliese.  

Now that Rob's in school about 32 hours a day I have to come up with cheap ways to feed and entertain myself. So as a two-fer I thought it'd be a good idea to make ravioli, PORK ravioli, and went through the whole egg-flour dough process before I realized I have no idea where the ravoili press is or if it's even been unpacked or what. So I made orichette with my massive thumbprints and they obviously came out way too doughy; I tried to make pesto but ran short on homegrown basil and substituted mostly with store bought mint and did I just make boiled flour balls with chimichurri? I guess they can't all be winners. And I should probably cool it with the overzealous kitchen whims.

But this salad-y apple of my eye was first rate, for sure. I felt inspired to go completely off recipe with my idea to house-toast walnuts and concoct a vinaigrette of honey mustard, horse radish, lime juice and olive oil. My first taste was pretty terrible but I managed to salvage it with agave and salt. The sweetness went well with the farmers market strawberries and contrasted nicely with the herbed goat cheese. Avocado, well, that just goes in everything these days. Hasn't made anything worse so far. 

Anyway, go vote for Coyote Pretty! :)