The Crazy Wisdom of Flerly

My baked potato soup

flerly — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:37:59 +0000

2 large baking potatoes
3 cups 2% milk
1/3 cup margarine
1/3 cup flour
1 cup chicken broth
2 tbsp light cream cheese
1 clove garlic

seasonings:
red pepper
onion flakes
salt
pepper

garnish:
shredded cheddar cheese
bacon bits

Bake potatoes in microwave

Make roux with margerine & flour. Add milk. Add chicken broth. Add crushed garlic. Simmer on low until potatoes are done.

Cut up cooked potatoes and skin into chunks.

In blender, mix 1/2 to 1 cup of the simmering liquid with 1/3 cup of potatoes and cream cheese until puree. Add back into simmering liquid.

Add seasonings to taste, then add remaining potato chunks. Soup is ready to serve. Top with garnish as desired. Serves 2 for dinner sized portion at about 400 calories each (without garnish).

Thin with additional milk if necessary, especially if reheating.

Moroccan Stewed White Beans Recipe

flerly — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:26:49 +0000

Make these stewed white beans as spicy as you like. Tomatoes, olive oil and Moroccan spices blend together to form a zesty sauce for this vegetarian dish. Serve as a side dish or entrée.

The recipe calls for dry beans. Remember to soak the beans the night before cooking.

The cooking time is for a pressure cooker. Double this time if using a conventional pot.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

500 g (about 1 1lb.) dry white haricot or Cannellini beans, soaked overnight and drained
3 ripe tomatoes, grated
1 medium onion, grated
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or pressed
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste (optional)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup olive oil

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients in a pressure cooker or pot. Add 2 liters (about 2 quarts) of water, and bring to a simmer.

Pressure cooker method. Cover, and cook on pressure over medium heat for about 40 minutes, or until the beans are tender. If the beans are still submerged in sauce, reduce the liquids until the sauce is thick and not watery. Adjust the seasoning if desired, and serve.

Pot method. Cover, and simmer the beans over medium heat about 1 1/2 hours, or until the beans are tender and the sauce is thick and no longer watery. (If the liquids reduce too much during cooking, add a little water to prevent the beans from burning.) Adjust the seasoning if desired, and serve.

Note that the beans should be quite saucy. The beans will consider to absorb liquid as they sit, so allow for this if preparing the dish in advance.

What’s up 2012?

flerly — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:10:56 +0000

Watched: Forks Over Knives

Read: Veganist

Hence, all the new recipes I’m trying. Favorite newly learned word: flexitarian. Making an attempt to go mostly meat-free for 2012. So far, delicious and a better consumption of all the “free-time” I have while only marginally employed, as opposed to the usual routine of worry, look for a job, and generally be curled into the fetal position.

Anywho, on tonight’s menu:

Savory Couscous
1 Tbl. butter
½ cup carrot, shredded
2 Tbl. green onion, finely sliced
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 ¼ uncooked wheat couscous, small grain
2 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
1 Tbl. fresh basil, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a medium sized sauce pan over medium heat. Add the carrots, green onions and mushrooms to the pan. Sauté for 1 -2 minutes until the mushrooms have softened slightly. Add the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir in the dry couscous, cover with a lid and remove from heat. Let the sauce pan sit completely covered for 5 – 7 minutes. DO NOT PEEK. Sprinkle the pine nuts and basil over the top and toss with a fork. Serves about 4 – 6 people as a side.

Alicia Silverstone’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

flerly — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:41:30 +0000

Photo: The Kind Diet

Back in the day, I was obsessed with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Now I make this healthier version and they are way better. In fact, I think they are the most ridiculously delicious things in the entire world. Look for graham crackers that are naturally sweetened or low in sugar (Health Valley makes a good one), and store the leftover crackers or crumbs in an airtight container for future use.

SERVINGS
12

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup Earth Balance butter
3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (preferably unsweetened and unsalted)
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs or 10 graham cracker squares
1/4 cup maple sugar or other granulated sweetener
1 cup grain-sweetened, nondairy chocolate or carob chips
1/4 cup soy, rice, or nut milk
1/4 cup chopped pecans, almonds, or peanuts

PREPARATION
1. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. (If You Care makes unbleached liners made from recycled paper.) Set aside.
2. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.
3. Stir in the peanut butter, graham cracker crumbs, and maple sugar and mix well.
4. Remove the mixture from the heat. Evenly divide the mixture, approximately 2 tablespoons per cup, among the muffin cups.
5. Combine the chocolate and milk in another pan. Stir over medium heat until the chocolate has melted.
6. Spoon the chocolate evenly over the peanut butter mixture.
7. Top with chopped nuts.
8. Place in the refrigerator to set for at least 2 hours before serving.

Alicia Silverstone’s Moroccan Couscous with Saffron

flerly — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:38:59 +0000

Photo: The Kind Diet

I adore couscous, and this is a wonderful way to prepare it. Not only is it tasty, it looks gorgeous on a big serving plate as the centerpiece of a meal. You can complement it with a simple salad or let it be the beginning of a feast that includes soup, hummus, and veggies. This recipe serves six, but you can halve it or just make a big batch and keep leftovers in the fridge.

SERVINGS
6

INGREDIENTS
2 cups peeled butternut squash, cut into 1/4 to 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups yellow onion, large dice
1 1/2 cups carrots, cut into 1/4 to 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 cups zucchini, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons Earth Balance butter
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
1 1/2 cups whole wheat couscous
2 scallions, white and green parts, chopped

PREPARATION
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Place the squash, onion, carrots, and zucchini on a baking sheet and toss with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper.
3. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, turning once with a spatula about midway through.
4. While the vegetables roast, bring the vegetable broth to a boil in a saucepan.
5. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the butter, remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper, cumin, saffron, and salt to taste.
6. Cover the pan and steep for 15 minutes.
7. Scrape the roasted vegetables and their juices into a large bowl, and add the couscous.
8. Bring the vegetable broth back to a boil, and pour over the couscous mixture all at once.
9. Cover tightly with a plate and allow to stand for 15 minutes.
10. Add the scallions, toss the couscous and vegetables with a fork, and serve.

Happy New Tir’ from Hungry-Girl.com! (Italian Dessert Swap!)

flerly — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:53:20 +0000

HG’s Turbo-Tremendous Tiramisu

‘Mis’ America!
We’ve made our guilt-free tiramisu even BETTER. Check out this updated recipe for the classic Italian dessert. MAMMA MIA, is it GOOD!!!

Ingredients:
1 tsp. instant coffee granules
1 tsp. sugar-free French vanilla powdered creamer (like the kind by Coffee-mate)
2 no-calorie sweetener packets (like Splenda or Truvia)
1 tbsp. Jell-O Sugar Free Fat Free Vanilla Instant pudding mix
1/4 cup fat-free ricotta cheese
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup Cool Whip Free (thawed)
6 ladyfingers (like the kind by Specialty Bakers; found in the produce or bakery section)
1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions:
In a glass, combine coffee granules, creamer, 1 sweetener packet, and 1/4 cup very hot water; stir to dissolve. Add 1/4 cup cold water. Transfer 2 tablespoons of the mixture to a medium bowl.

Add pudding mix to the medium bowl and stir until mostly smooth. Mix in ricotta cheese, vanilla extract, and 1 sweetener packet. Fold in Cool Whip.

Place 3 ladyfingers side by side in a wide bowl (or on a plate). Drizzle with half of the remaining coffee mixture, about 3 tablespoons. Evenly spread with half of the pudding mixture; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder.

Evenly layer with remaining ingredients: 3 ladyfingers (side by side), coffee mixture, pudding mixture, and 1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder.

Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Enjoy!

MAKES 1 SERVING

Serving Size: entire recipe
Calories: 275
Fat: 3g
Sodium: 448mg
Carbs: 48.5g
Fiber: 1g
Sugars: 22g
Protein: 9g

PointsPlus® value 7*

“Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh….”

flerly — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:53:56 +0000

Live with intention.
Walk to the edge.
Listen Hard.
Practice wellness.
Play with abandon.
Laugh.
Choose with no regret.
Appreciate your friends.
Continue to learn.
Do what you love.
Live as if this is all there is.
― Mary Anne Radmacher

Ghostbusters 2011 =)

flerly — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:50:54 +0000

scottlava:

“I know exactly what to do.”

The Day is Done

flerly — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:24:07 +0000

 The day is done, and the darkness
 Falls from the wings of Night,
 As a feather is wafted downward
 From an eagle in his flight.

 I see the lights of the village
 Gleam through the rain and the mist,
 And a feeling of sadness comes o'er me
 That my soul cannot resist:

 A feeling of sadness and longing,
 That is not akin to pain,
 And resembles sorrow only
 As the mist resembles the rain.

 Come, read to me some poem,
 Some simple and heartfelt lay,
 That shall soothe this restless feeling,
 And banish the thoughts of day.

 Not from the grand old masters,
 Not from the bards sublime,
 Whose distant footsteps echo
 Through the corridors of Time,

 For, like strains of martial music,
 Their mighty thoughts suggest
 Life's endless toil and endeavor;
 And tonight I long for rest.

 Read from some humbler poet,
 Whose songs gushed from his heart,
 As showers from the clouds of summer,
 Or tears from the eyelids start;

 Who, through long days of labor,
 And nights devoid of ease,
 Still heard in his soul the music
 Of wonderful melodies.

 Such songs have a power to quiet
 The restless pulse of care,
 And comes like the benediction
 That follows after prayer.

 Then read from the treasured volume
 The poem of thy choice,
 And lend to the rhyme of the poet
 The beauty of thy voice.

 And the night shall be filled with music,
 And the cares, that infest the day,
 Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs,
 And as silently steal away.

— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Ian Van Dahl – Come 2 Me

flerly — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 05:00:05 +0000

Ian Van Dahl – Come 2 Me

The first time that I saw you

You blew my mind

You made me take a look inside

I couldn’t hide

Never thought I could feel this way

About someone

I don’t know much about life

But I know you’re the one

Come to me

Come to me

So come to me

I like to be the one you need

So come to me

Then you will see what you mean to me

Please come to me……………

My heart has been broken

So many times

But you turned darkness into light

You made me smile

Never thought I could feel this way

About someone

I don’t know much about life

But I know you’re the one

Come to me

Come to me

So come to me

I like to be the one you need

So come to me

Then you will see what you mean to me

Please come to me….