What type of recipes do you want to see on the blog? If you have suggestions, send them my way. I’ll see what I can do.

More tomorrow. It’s time for bed. The sound of the steady rain falling against my kitchen window is about to lull me to sleep. Good night…

Today is also Day 21 of the fast – a day when most people are going back to their “normal” eating and way of life. Even though the fast is officially over, continue to seek Him with the same fervency as you have for the last 21 days. Don’t allow yourself to become so distracted that you forget all that God has shown you these last three weeks. He has so much more in store for you! 

Perhaps you saw God do amazing things during your fast, and you’re super excited to see what He is going to do next. But, maybe you didn’t see those answers at all and are still waiting on the Lord. Be encouraged! Your fasting and seeking the Lord was not in vain. God has been working in your situation all along, even if you haven’t been able to see it. Daniel himself probably experienced doubt, for Lord assured him with these words:

“As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed.” – Daniel 9:23

YOU are also highly esteemed. God loves you and is pleased with your sacrifice. Just keep on keeping on. I pray that as you hunger for Him, He will fill you up to overflowing and pour out blessing upon blessing into your life.

Thank you so much for your interest in the blog, which has been a total God-thing and such an answer to prayer for me in many ways. God has shown me that He can do ANYTHING – bringing 2000 people to a new church on its first Sunday worship service is easy for Him. Giving me an idea for a blog and then showing me step by step how to implement it…well, that’s a piece of cake for the Creator of the Universe.

So what next? Now that Day 21 is here, what happens to the blog? Will it live on? 

Only God knows.

I have no idea what will happen next. I’m just trusting God to show me. Yes, I believe that the blog will continue, although I can’t even tell you what to expect. So, stay with me, and we’ll see what God does.

I have a feeling that it will be even more than I could ever ask for or imagine….

“Not to us, O LORD, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.” – Psalm 115:1

I’m not sure what happened overnight but the forecast was way off! I didn’t mind, though, because we’ve had a nice with friends. Plus, we all fell asleep and enjoyed a nice, rainy day nap…and no slip-n-slide.

Since it’s still only in the mid 50s, I think tonight might be a good chili night. I’m thinking about making this recipe - chili with a little bit of Jamaican flair!

Jamaican Chili

1 TB extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded & chopped
1 cup chopped onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup water or vegetable broth
3 medium tomatoes, chopped or 1 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes
1 15-oz can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 15-oz can cannellini beans, rinsed & drained
1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Heat olive oil over medium heat, and cook until onions are soft and translucent. Add yellow pepper and garlic. Cook until pepper is tender. Add water tomatoes, beans, cumin, paprika, and salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Stir in parsley just before serving.

Recipe Notes:

• For a spicier chili, add a diced jalapeno pepper or hot chile powder.
• Use chickpeas instead of cannelini beans.
• Add more vegetables, such as carrots. celery, sweet potato, or zucchini.

Heat olive oil over medium heat, and add red onions. Cook 3-5 minutes, or until onions are soft and translucent. Stir in asparagus, peppers, olives, and peas. Lower heat and cook 10 minutes. Cook pasta according to directions. When pasta is finished cooking, drain. Add pesto and vegetable mixture. Stir well, and serve. If using brown rice, keep rice warm until vegetables are done.

Tomato Slices Topped with Pesto
Slice tomatoes, and spread with pesto. Best when tomatoes and pesto are chilled.

Pesto Baked Potato
Instead of using butter on your potato, top with a little pesto. Then, top with your favorite vegetables.

Fall Harvest Oatmeal

2 small apples, thinly sliced
1 cup unsweetened apple juice
1/8 tsp cinnamon
4 Medjool dates, chopped
2 TB chopped pecans
1 cup rolled oats

Preheat oven to 350º F. Place sliced apples in baking dish. In a small bowl, whisk apple juice and cinnamon, and pour over apples. Bake 30 minutes.

Cook oats according to package directions. Top with baked apples, along with some of the apple juice. Add dates and pecans. Serve immediately. Makes two servings.

Recipe Notes

• Use raisins instead of dates.
• For more apple flavor, add unsweetened applesauce to your oatmeal.

I started with a marinade that I’ve used for grilled steaks in the past, and it worked beautifully. The only ingredient I couldn’t use was white wine, so I substituted pineapple juice instead. I had a little bit of tofu left over from making the smoothie this morning, so I marinated it in olive oil with chopped olives, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic powder, and fresh herbs.

Grilled Portabello Mushroom Steaks with Sun-dried Tomato Tofu

2 portabello mushroom caps

Marinade:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
1/4 cup soy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
1-2 green onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp crushed rosemary

Place mushrooms in a glass dish with gills up. Mix ingredients of marinade in a small bowl, and pour over caps. Marinate at room temperature 30 minutes, and prepare tofu topping.

Sun-dried Tomato Tofu

4 oz extra-firm tofu, cut into 1/4″ slices
1 TB extra-virgin olive oil
2 TB chopped sun-dried tomatoes
6 olives, chopped
2-4 fresh basil leaves, cut into thin strips
1 TB chopped fresh parsley
1/8 tsp garlic powder

Preheat oven to broil setting. Place tofu slices in a baking dish, and drizzle olive oil over them. Top with tomatoes and olives. Add basil leaves, parsley, and garlic powder. Let sit at room temperature 30 minutes.

Prepare grill (we used an indoor Foreman grill, which was great). Put tofu in the oven and broil for 5 minutes. When grill is ready, place mushroom caps over heat for 3-5 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking time.

To serve, place grilled mushroom caps on a plate, top with tofu mixture, and drizzle a tablespoon or two of the rosemary marinade over all.

Recipe Notes

• You could eliminate the tofu without affecting the flavor. It just adds some nice protein.
• Add artichokes or sliced onions to the tofu mixture.

Strawberry Banana Smoothie

3 oz extra-firm tofu
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/4 cup apple juice
6 strawberries
1/2 frozen banana

Other fruit ideas:
Blueberries, blackberries, cantaloupe, kiwifruit, mangoes, oranges, peaches, pears, pineapple, raspberries, watermelon.

Place all ingredients in a blender, and process until smooth.

Recipe Notes

• Prepare bananas ahead of time by removing peels, and placing in a plastic bag until frozen.
• To increase the protein content of your smoothie, add almonds, cashews, or any other type of nut.
• Add flaxseed meal for a little extra fiber.
• Use 1/2 cup of apple juice or 1/2 cup almond milk instead of 1/4 cup of each.

1 acorn squash
2 cups sliced apples
2 cups apple juice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Toasted walnuts

Preheat oven to 350º F. Cut squash cross-wise into rings. Discards seeds and pulp. Place in a 9×13 baking dish. Spread apples on and around squash. Mix cinnamon with apple juice, and pour over squash and apples. Bake 30-35 minutes, turning apples and squash after about 15 minutes. To serve, remove from juice, and sprinkle with toasted walnuts.

Recipe Notes:

• Because of their ribs, acorn squash can be tricky to cut, so be careful.
• Slice the squash into wedges instead of rings.
• The squash’s skin does become tender after cooking and is technically edible. However, I recommend trimming it off before eating so that its bitterness doesn’t affect the flavor of the dish.

The first recipe uses kale. You’ve probably seen it in the produce section at the store but either didn’t know what it was or knew what it was, but didn’t know what to do with it! Kale is very versatile and can be eaten raw or cooked. In many recipes that call for spinach, you could easily use kale instead.

Recipe #2 for today is my final attempt at a yummy fruit pizza, and I’m happy to say I finally found a crust that I like. The texture is sweet, and slightly crunchy. The dates really make it.

Well, it’s already almost time to pick up the girls, but I was able to get at least one thing on my to-do list done for today. Next, I just have to do the dishes from my morning of cooking. Anyone have a passion for cleaning?

Kale with Tomatoes & Onions

1/2 bunch kale (2-3 stems)
2 TB extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup thinly-sliced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup water or vegetable broth
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
Pine nuts, optional

Remove tough stems from kale, and rinse well. Tear into bite-size pieces, and set aside. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Put tomatoes in a large bowl, and squeeze with your hands so that some juice is extracted. Pour tomatoes and juice in skillet, and cook 15 minutes. Stir in kale, tomato juice, water, basil, oregano, and salt. Cover, and simmer 5-7 minutes, or until the kale has softened. Sprinkle pine nuts on top, if desired. Serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

• Serve over cooked brown rice, lentils, or quinoa.
• Add 1/2 cup cannellini beans.
• Subsitute kale with fresh spinach.

Fruit Pizza with Nutty Date Crust

Crust:
3 Medjool dates, pitted & roughly chopped
1/3 cup almond flour or meal
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1 TB apple juice

Filling:
3 oz extra-firm tofu
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 TB apple juice
Toasted coconut, optional

Fruit Topping Ideas:

Apples, bananas, blueberries, grapes, kiwifruit, oranges, peaches, strawberries.

Preheat oven to 350º F. Place dates, almond meal, pecans, and apple juice in a food processor. Process until mixture forms a ball. Roll out to 1/4″ thickness on a pizza pan. Bake 8-10 minutes, or until edges are browned and slightly crispy. Remove from oven,
and let cool.

Put tofu, strawberries, and apple juice in a food processor. Process until mixture resembles the consistency of cream cheese. Spread onto cooled crust. Sprinkle with toasted coconut, if desired. Top with your choice of fruit. Refrigerate two hours, or until chilled.

Makes one 8-inch pizza.

My second attempt came out pretty well, but I’m not completely satisfied. I was hesitant to even post the recipe it at all, but I thought you might want to see what was in it. I’m gonna give it one more try tomorrow, and I am going to use dates and nuts to sweeten up that crust a tad more.

Crust:
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 TB extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 TB unsweetened shredded coconut

Filling:
4 oz extra-firm tofu
1 small banana, cut into chunks
1/2 TB pineapple juice

Fruit Topping Ideas:
Apples, bananas, blueberries, grapes, kiwifruit, oranges, peaches, strawberries.

Preheat oven to 350º F. Place oats in a food processor, and process until the oats are finely ground like flour. Transfer to a large bowl, and add applesauce, oil, and coconut. Roll into a ball, and flatten out to 1/4″ thickness on a pizza pan. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until edges are browned and slightly crispy. Remove from oven, and let cool. 

Put tofu, banana, and pineapple juice in a food processor. Process until mixture resembles the consistency of cream cheese. Spread onto cooled crust. Sprinkle Top with your choice of fruit, and refrigerate two hours, or until chilled.

Recipe Notes

• Sprinkle fruit topping with toasted coconut.