Lebenslustiger.com (Entries tagged as vegetables)

Natures Motherhood

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:00:00 +0000

Happy Day,

Anette

Little Summerpowerhouses...

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 06:35:00 +0000

Warm sun rays - refreshing Summer thunderstorms...

All contained in those wonderful tasty little shallots.

Ahhhhh...I miss summer...

What about you?

Did you see a lot of sun lately?

Sunny week,

Anette

P.S. more every-day-heros here

Scallion Soup

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 07:46:00 +0000

Honestly - I'm a bit embarrassed by the profanity of this post...

Since spring I wanted to tell you, that scallion soup is my absolute favorite soup and when I saw fresh local scallions again the last two weeks at farmers market, i thought "O.k. - now or never!"

Must be the second harvest cycle - the scallions don't look that perky and bright green like the spring ones do, but they are still delicious.

Maria from Austria "taught" me, how to make the soup. I would have never gotten the idea to just use plain scallions as the single ingredient for a soup.

Of course I know french onion soup with bread and melted cheese - but that's different.

Scallions soup is so much simpler - it's almost genius!

It's literally done in a very few minutes.

Take 3 bunches of cleaned and cut up scallions, roast for just a little bit (don't burn) in some olive oil, cover with water (I don't like the soup too thin) and season with powdered broth. Cook on low temperature until scallions are soft but still in pieces. (about 15min) DONE!

Enjoy!

Bon Appetit, Anette

Autumn Market

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 00:57:00 +0000

Loving fall's colors and textures - you too?

More market pics here

XOXO, Anette

Best Of

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 00:18:00 +0000

My last day at the Austrian herb farm - in case you missed day 2 , day 3, day 4 and the story how it all happened, please read here and here if you like.

I am completely filled with all those wonderful impressions of my Sonnentor-Maria-Andi-Austria-adventure.

I saw sooo much - and had soo many great experiences.

What was the best? Hard to say....

There is of course Maria - the spiritual organic herb-farm specialist, joy-yoga teacher and fasting expert, who made a deep impact with all her wise and kind words.

Or friendly and fun Andi and his oh-so-old tractor.

Maybe it's the fact, that i now know how a lentil plant looks like.

Could be the wonderful birds nesting and feeding their young right outside my bedroom window - and cats, too...and of course Jette, the cute baby cow!

Or the funny dirt lumps jumping joyfully to the sky from the wheels of the tractor on our tour thru the fields.

Not to forget my (almost) successful fights at night with Sonnentors' blog software. Currently Peter, one of this years candidate, visits another herb farmer of Sonnentors'.

I guess it's all together. All the big and small moments and wonders who made my time in Austria so very special.

A THOUSAND THANKS goes to Sonnentor, Andi and Maria for taking such good care of me. I will miss our talks and laughs and this beautiful country, but of course:

I ALWAYS look forward to the next great fun adventure!

XOXO, Anette

Rain-break???

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 00:43:00 +0000

Day 4 at the Austrian herb farm - in case you missed day 2 , day 3 and the story how it all happened, please read here and here.

Gentle rain is good for the fields - I take a deep breath and lean back. Does that mean we will all have a break from work today because the greens and the soil on the fields will be too wet to work on them???

Of course NOT! There are thousends of other things Maria and Andi have to work on or organize. For example sharpening the tools.

That way they will work even better and faster tomorrow with the weeds. Andi figured out, that the old way of sharpening the metal with a hammer yields much better results than just grinding the edges with a power tool.

He and Maria run a little organic market in the old farmhouse.

They sell all their harvested goods like spelt, kamut, lentils, buckwheat and of course their dried herbs and spices.

Maria shows me her expensive flour mill.

I am impressed by the quality of the fine, silky flour it is able to produce.

The smell of the freshly ground flour is just amazing! Speaking of smell - I wish, you would all be able to smell through the screen and we could really share the unbelievable good aromas from a big field of fenugreek, fennel - or caraway - greens.

Old Maria, Andis' mum, has work for me. With her almost eighty years she weights the orders and puts them into bags.

My job is to close those bags and label them.

Old Maria is not too happy with my work..... It has to be made HER way

I wait for a good moment and then slip quietly out of the door to see how the little baby cow is doing today. Maria is just feeding it with an milk filled old beer-bottle.

We start joking that a real beer might also be a good idea for someone who has had so much struggle on it's very first days on earth..... To my big surprise and joy i got the honor to name the baby! I think of my daughter Jette, who, thanks God, is so healthy and strong. It will be a good omen for the cute brown-white baby.

Everything will be alright.

Only one day left - stay tuned for day 5!

XOXO, Anette

Farmers Yoga

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 00:42:00 +0000

Pretty much exactly a year ago I was invited by Sonnentor to spent a week on a farm of one of their herb suppliers in a beautiful, remote part of Austria. You can read here, how I ended up being chosen to work on the farm and to blog about my experience. Before I actually headed to Maria's and Andy's farm I spent a wonderful day at Sonnentor's headquarter. You can read about that day here. Since I had just started blogging back then, I hadn't had many readers. But - thanks to YOU - that has changed! I'm so happy, you are here! So, I thought you would enjoy reading about this little adventure as much as I enjoy thinking back to it.

But now off to the farm...

Eighty-three years old Andreas is worried. "It does not want to drink". He is talking about the little newborn baby cow, which is standing in a corner of the stable.

Usually he would be on his tractor working the fields by now. Something he has done almost daily as long as he can think back.

"Maybe there is too much pressure on the utter", i suggest - thinking back to my own breastfeeding adventures. Andi, Andreas' son, gets a bucket and starts milking.

He will call the vet because he fears the baby is having a navel infection. I cross my fingers - feeling sorry for the little one.

Maria and i get back on our bikes and I follow her to the fields.

Back home i do a lot of yoga but looking at Marias upper arm muscles i have to admit, she owns the much nicer pair. So, i start to wonder what kind of exercise she does...Well, i don't need to wonder very long though, because we just arrived at her yoga center. Nice, hidden place behind a little forest - quiet and warm... but... no mats. She hands me a metal tool on a wooden stick and leads me to my place. Hm, something else is missing - instead hardwood floor there are thousands of green little bushels.

And then the lesson begins... Forward fold - reach for the ground - check if there is something else growing than the green sugar roots, take a step - repeat at your own pace. Forward fold- reach for the ground, check.....If you need a break: come up, take a deep breath - rinse and repeat.

WOW - after a matter of very few minutes i had my mantra: "Please let there be no other little plants growing between the roots so i can make a longer step; Please let there be no other little plants....."

See, it CAN be very easy with the whole meditation and muscle definition thing ( AND with getting your feet REALLY dirty ) : hard, hard work will do the trick.

It's so amazing how much devoted hand work Maria and Andi happily put into their herbs and spices. They have been working with SONNENTOR for over twenty years now. The only fact I regret for today is that I haven't had a second helping of those delicious, sweet, handmade pasta we had for lunch.

Well, it's fine - i already smell Marias rye bread baking in the oven. She made it from scratch....

Have you been to Austria yet?

Stay tuned for day 3 !

XOXO, Anette

New Food Blogs Finds And Long Time Favorites

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0000

I'm REALLY impressed by Foodblogs!

What a dedicated and admirable effort...

Well thought out planning - perfect timing - excellent mouthwatering pictures...

And always in the danger of over done baking, frying, steaming....

And then the cleaning...

Uahhhh...

You hear me...

Cooking and baking are not really my thing.

But I LOVE eating!!!

Here is where I'm heating up my appetite lately:

Zucker Zimt & Liebe

Call me Cupcake

Tartelette

Seelische Kost

Kuriositätenladen

La Tartine Gourmande

Journey Kitchen

Happyolks

And my All Time Favourites:

Roost

Green Kitchen Storys

What Katie ate

Enjoy!

All these wonderful springy and fresh pictures by La Tartine Gourmande

XOXO

Healthy resolution: CHEWING

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:16:00 +0000

Healthier eating - a popular New Year resolution!

I have been checking out various forms of healthy eating basically since teenage times: wholefood, vegetarian, vegan, raw...organic anyway.

Here is my personal take: "You are what you eat"

YES - that's right - ALMOST!

Actually it should read: "You are what you eat, digest, absorb, breathe, think and move."

You can fill yourself up with the most super fresh, healthy ingredients available - only they ALONE most likely won't make you an instantly healthy, vibrant happy camper.

One of the key points are good digestion and proper absorption of nutrients beginning in your mouth.

Chew, chew, CHEW - 30-40x every bite...UFF...

Sure you heard about it before, but it's so easy to forget - especially by impatient personalities like myself.

Though I LOVE food and eating I want it to go quickly; chop CHOP; sometimes eating standing up at the counter or munching in the car; already thinking about something else I need or want to do next...

Does that sound familiar to you?

So I came up with a trick to lure me into chewing: crunchiness ( I HAVE to post the Wikipedia explanation here, because it's so hilarious: Crunchiness is the gustatory sensation of muffled grinding of a foodstuff. Crunchiness differs from crispness in that a crisp item is quickly atomized, while a crunchy one offers sustained, granular resistance to jawaction. While crispness is difficult to maintain, crunchiness is difficult to overcome.)

My favorite crunch to overcome:

slightly roasted

wonderfully fragrant

sunflower seeds!

Nothing added - nothing fancy, super healthy and really inexpensive but OH so delicious!

On top of salad, vegetables, soups, mashed potatoes, casseroles...

What are your (eating) tricks?

Cold and flu fighting chili elexir

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 18:41:26 +0000

I am grateful - we have been blessed with great health this year.

Even the start of the colder winterish season didn't bring a cold so far.

So - when I found these beautiful chili varieties at the farmers market last week...

... it made me think of a magic immune-boosting cold and flu fighting elixir I once heard about.

I definitely will give it a try to support my body further against winter's nasty flu and cold bugs.

Chilis contain next to many vitamins and minerals CAPSAICIN and this makes

those little hotties from natures powerhouse extra effective.

It stimulates the metabolism, cleanses the respiratory tract and speeds

up blood circulation. Due to it's heat producing properties it is also used for pain relief.

Here comes the recipe for this all natural elixir:

2 cups Water
2 or more slices of chili
6-10 or more thicker slices of ginger
juice of 1 lemon
optional:
3 garlic gloves
half an onion
8-10 sprigs of thyme

Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat and add the chosen ingredients.

Let infuse for 10 min or more, strain, add some honey to taste, STAY OR GET WELL and ENJOY!!!

Oh - I also love them as a spicy Christmas decoration...

Foodblogs and other great culinary delights

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 15:04:00 +0000

Look at this Chard...

Isn't it just FANTASTIC???

...intense colors in...

...exciting combinations with...

...diverse leaf formations for...

...endless possibilities - this time, onion, potatoes, red lentils and spices to taste are ready to jump into a pot for a soup creation which will turn out...

...YUMMY; well - the soup really turned out yummy - BUT - cooking unfortunately is harsh to those incredible, magical colors...

And since I usually show my pictures in their pure and raw state without any photo shop adjustments, I had to decide against the 'after cooking' pics...

Awww...you had just started drooling?

Don't be sad - here are some awesome, faboulus food blogs with incredible mouthwatering pictures for you!

green kitchen stories

Cucina Piccina

You can find even more at BRIGITTE - my all time favorite women's magazine. They run a monthly food blog award program right now and will name the overall best food blog at the end of the year.

O.k. - have to run...warm soup is waiting....

Locally grown

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 18:28:21 +0000

Hawai'i is the newest of the 50 US states (since 1959) and just like in big Mama country, one can find burgers and fries on every - o.k. friends - second corner.

That fact generates an interesting question : WHAT to eat then???

Easy answer: Raw foods!!!

Next to famous Ahi 'Poke' - raw tuna marinated with soy sauce, spices, onions or seaweed - and shops who cater to the ambitious raw food enthusiasts with raw pizza, crackers and more good stuff like this raw coconut lime cake,

i personally think, delicious fresh fruit is THE way to go on the islands!

Fruit in tropical abundance - locally grown pineapples ( Hawai'i is also known as the 'Pineapple-State'),

locally grown Mangoes (growing on REALLY tall, big trees),

and - my favorite - locally grown Papayas (extremely enzyme rich),

as well as locally grown lilikoi,

starfruit,

bananas,

coconut.....

just to name a very few.....

Did you actually know, that the black Papaya seeds are edible?

Their look not only reminds of black Peppercorns - their taste does too!

You could actually dry and grind them for a Pepper replacement. Here on the islands, they like to make a really tasty papaya-seed-salad-dressing.

I just love to eat a few of them along with the golden, soft - oh so yummy - flesh right out of the skin. HMMMM......

Food is ready.....

Summer afternoons.....

nospam@example.com (Lebenslustiger) — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 22:09:00 +0000

Yesterday my phone rang and when i picked up, Gaby was on the other end.

"Hey", she said," I passed a strawberry field on my bike tour and couldn't resist.

Wanna come over for strawberry cake"???

What a question! SURE!

Gaby moved to one of the neighbor villages not too long ago and is patiently converting a big grassy field, which was used to be a sheep pasture, into a flower and vegetable garden.

We had a fun and yummy afternoon on this formally owned sheep territory and when it was time to go, Gaby offered me some of her precious vegetables to take home. Off we went to check out salad and radish plants. She had actually gotten the seeds from the 'Manufactum' catalog : land-lovers bible and number 1 country living expert for excellent style and taste.... First person i met so far, who did that. Most, i guess - including myself, just marvel and dream about Manufactums products..... WOW - i got down on my knees in awe to carefully pet those royal greens. Turns out - after pulling - the radishes obviously did NOT like the sheepy energie loaded soil to much.

At least, the red roots didn't - the greens instead seemed to just LOVE it! Lush big bunches of radish greens...

I remembered a recipe from Lea Linster published in BRIGITTE magazine- which, by the way, i have been reading for the last thirtytwo (!) years- 10/2011 and quickly hurried home....

.....to make radish greens soup! Here it is :

Wash and cut 2-3 bunches of radish greens. Heat a spoonful butter or Ghee and saute an cut up onion and a garlic glove. Add the greens and then 3 cups of broth or water. Simmer for 10 minutes and puree. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream.

YUM, ENJOY!