Blissfulbritt
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  • Tag: Harvest

    • Garden Harvest – Summer Veggie Salad Recipe

      Posted at 7:41 AM by Brittany, on August 6, 2014

      I’m in the final stages of finishing my coffee master training for Starbucks, and have been lucky enough to go through the entire process with another coworker. She and I were able to get together at her house recently to work on our final “project” for the store.

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      After working on our project for a little over an hour I decided it was time for a break, meaning it was time to explore her property. She lives on a small farm fully equipped with cows, chickens, a goat, and best of all a small organic garden. Talk about bliss.

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      I was absolutely ecstatic when I was offered to take some of the luscious bounty home with me. Local, fresh, organic, free produce!? You betchur britches I wanted some! With a bowl the size of a small horse completely filled with green goodness, I knew this would be the perfect opportunity to get crazy wild in my kitchen.

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      For starters I baked 4 small loaves of zucchini banana bread. I used this recipe and made a few alterations. It was very mild, and definitely needs something on top such as a nut butter or fresh berries.

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      The real winner of this harvest was my roasted zucchini & carrot black bean salad with a creamy kale and walnut pesto sauce. I wanted to make something that would use almost everything I was gifted.

      So jazzed.

      So jazzed.

      Items from my bowl used for this meal were:

      • zucchini
      • carrots
      • snap peas
      • kale
      • basil
      • lettuce

      I also got some cilantro that I used for some taco salads, but I digress.

      Roasted Zucchini & Carrot Black Bean Salad

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      Ingredients:

      For the salad:

      • 3/4 cup roasted zucchini
      • 2/4 cup roasted carrots
      • 1.5 cups boiled sweet potatoes
      • 1/2 cup black beans

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      For the pesto:

      • 1/2 cup raw walnuts
      • 1/4 cup + 3 tsp water
      • 1.5 tblsp olive oil
      • 1 tblsp + 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
      • 3 medium sized kale leaves
      • 3 medium sized lettuce leaves (or more kale)
      • 5 medium/large basil leaves
      • 1/4 cup snap peas (just the peas, and this is optional)
      • 1 tsp salt

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       Directions:

      1. Slice your carrots and zucchini into desired size (you can see what I did in the photo above) and lay flat on a roasting tray. Roast for about 45-60 minutes. The zucchini didn’t roast well and was a bit mushy, but  still edible of course.
      2. Chop about two smaller sized sweet potatoes and fully submerge them in water to boil. Boil for about 20 minutes, be sure not to over boil them or they will fall apart.
      3. While everything is cooking you can make your pesto. Combine all your ingredients into a high speed blender or food processor and combine until smooth. You may want to add more water depending on how thick you like your pesto.
      4. Once all your veggies are done combine everything into a large bowl. This makes enough for 2 people with a bit leftover.

      Note: The veggies are all very soft, so something like crunchy chips or lettuce leaves will round out the texture of this meal.

      I used the rest of my lettuce leaves and I put just a dollop of the pesto sauce on top because I’m not a huge sauce fan. With chips on the side.

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      I am amazed by the powerful taste of garden fresh produce. 10x better than anything in the store, but I suppose that’s a given! It took me all of three days to rip through this produce. I need a garden!

      Q: Did you garden at all this year? I tried to plant some cilantro, but the slugs got it…no excuses for next year! OH or winter veggies!

      b

      | 44 Comments Tagged Coffee, Coffee Master, Farm, Garden, Gluten Free, Harvest, Recipe, Vegan
    • Garden Fresh

      Posted at 7:49 AM by Brittany, on September 6, 2013

      While I love growing my own produce, I reallllyyy love reaping the benefits of other peoples home grown produce. You can imagine my excitment when I came home the other night to find these sitting on my kitchen table…

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      If I had any doubts about what veggies to pair with my cous cous for dinner, they were instantly squashed from my mind. Also, not pictured were some heirloom tomatoes. I was inspired to harvest some Swiss chard from my own garden and create my meal.

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      Simple, yet oh so delicious. I ran a whopping 3 miles to earn this feast.

      Speaking of miles, I am welcoming this week of “easier runs.” My body has felt so fatigued lately thanks to long days at work, running, getting a head cold, Aunt Flo coming to visit, and insanity. I am allowing myself to skip insanity if I feel too tired (I never skip my runs though.) There is not enough coffee in the day to give me the energy to do insanity at 8PM. Just no. Even this beauty doesn’t cut it…

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      Please note the DEEP pocket of foam. I now sprinkle pumpkin spice on top of my lattes to make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. I sipped this amazing creation while staring out the window while it poured rain. Fall is coming..better harvest my garden while I still can!

      Q: Did you get a good garden harvest this year? Your own or someone else’s?

      b

      | 46 Comments Tagged Fall, Garden, Harvest, Produce, Running, Vegan
    • The First Harvest

      Posted at 9:28 AM by Brittany, on May 14, 2012

      It’s about time I gave you all an update on my wine box garden. So far I am beyond pleased with how things have turned out. It’s been just about two months, and I’ve already harvested some of the goods! Here are some before and after photos.

      Onions

      Beets 

      Carrots

      Swiss Chard

      The Swiss chard has amazed me the most! The wine boxes have seen better days, and probably wont be used again after this growing season. They have continued to do their job, and for that I love them! The remaining wine boxes (I told you I was hoarding them) will be used for shelving/decoration.

      The chard was getting so large in some spots that it was shading the little leaves below. Time to harvest.

      These will grow MUCH larger, but having a few right now was great. They were washed, cut, and mixed in with some lentils.

      It is so rewarding eating produce from your own garden, and this is just the beginning. I will literally pee myself when I eat my beets. I will probably cry too. It will be a messy moment.

      The beets and carrots have been thinned so hopefully they will grow into giant beet balls and carrot tubes. Everyone is invited over for a carrot,onion,beet,chard,garlic fest at my dinner table in another month or two.

      Q: Have you harvested anything from your garden yet? If you don’t have a garden have you tried any new produce lately?

      | 48 Comments Tagged DIY, Harvest, Produce, Wine Box Garden
    • BRITTANY- Self proclaimed minimalistic nomad striving to maintain a balanced, healthy life with good food, long bike rides, deep connections, exploration, and lots of cucumbers.
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    • Contact: blissfulbritt@yahoo.com
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