I was feeling adventurous this morning, and went completely off the grid to make this morning blend. Unfortunately, the blend was not so splendid. Other than the color, it just didn’t come together. The lemonade was a bad idea, it was overpowering. I think there’s still some potential with this recipe, the carrot and apple could be an interesting combo. I’ll try it another time. It’s worth trying out the boundaries, sometimes you’ll find an unexpected delight. At the very least, I made something healthy, but the goal is to make it delightful as well. Tomorrow it’s back to the more familiar, I promise! 
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I was feeling adventurous this morning, and went completely off the grid to make this morning blend. Unfortunately, the blend was not so splendid. Other than the color, it just didn’t come together. The lemonade was a bad idea, it was overpowering. I think there’s still some potential with this recipe, the carrot and apple could be an interesting combo. I’ll try it another time. It’s worth trying out the boundaries, sometimes you’ll find an unexpected delight. At the very least, I made something healthy, but the goal is to make it delightful as well. Tomorrow it’s back to the more familiar, I promise! 

I decided to make a big batch of Butternut soup that should last me at least 3 meals. I was pleasantly surprised to find it hardly took any time in my pressure cooker to soften all the veggies adequately. In total, I did 30 minutes of prep (figuring out what to include, cleaning veggies, and dicing) and 30 minutes of cooking to get to plating. 1 hour of work for 3 meals isn’t bad! I also separated some of the veggies from blending to give it some body, but I think it would be better served with a grain; maybe farro, or a small pasta. It needs a little something to give it more texture, but otherwise a successful blend. 

I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with this, but I made it and applied it to a few dishes. Thats part of the fun of this for me, making something tasty, and trying different ways to appreciate the same basic thing. From this simple blend I made two soup variations; yesterday’s lunch, and today’s lunch

Today’s Blend was another splendid experiment. I wanted to make a soup, but I wasn’t sure what exactly I was going to do. The final production is as much about my prior knowledge of making soup as it was tasting and trying things out. I ended up making a base puree out of onion, garlic, carrot and parsnip, and adding fresh cut corn for a little crunch. Until then I didn’t know you could eat corn fresh, its brilliant! In total sum, a very successful lunch.

I went rogue on recipe and tested out my own recipe for carrot-parsnip-ginger soup. I made it late last night in prep for a busy work week (should last me 2 meals). It was packed with flavor, but I think it needed a little more time boiling before blending (it has a certain fibrous/density to it), and maybe a little cream or ricotta. Overall, not bad for a first try!
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I went rogue on recipe and tested out my own recipe for carrot-parsnip-ginger soup. I made it late last night in prep for a busy work week (should last me 2 meals). It was packed with flavor, but I think it needed a little more time boiling before blending (it has a certain fibrous/density to it), and maybe a little cream or ricotta. Overall, not bad for a first try!

Following up with yesterday’s soup excursion, I tried my own variation. I threw all sorts of goodies in there, whatever sounded good. One change I made was after cooking the veggies, I put about 2/3 in the blender on soup mode, and then added the other 1/3 to pulse more gently (it was a little too smooth before, I like a little chunkiness in my soup). Splendid indeed!
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Following up with yesterday’s soup excursion, I tried my own variation. I threw all sorts of goodies in there, whatever sounded good. One change I made was after cooking the veggies, I put about 2/3 in the blender on soup mode, and then added the other 1/3 to pulse more gently (it was a little too smooth before, I like a little chunkiness in my soup). Splendid indeed!

I decided to try out my Blendtec’s soup button. So good. I was inspired by a recipe book that I picked up from Chez Panisse, and tried out their Spinach soup. I garnished with some fresh carrots to give it a different texture. I was impressed by how simple the ingredients were to get such a nice result; and by how bright the green was from the spinach. It was splendid!  
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I decided to try out my Blendtec’s soup button. So good. I was inspired by a recipe book that I picked up from Chez Panisse, and tried out their Spinach soup. I garnished with some fresh carrots to give it a different texture. I was impressed by how simple the ingredients were to get such a nice result; and by how bright the green was from the spinach. It was splendid!  

After to last few successes, I was feeling bold, and decided to push the limits. I tried to do an entirely vegetable set with apple cider; all I can say is I don’t recommend it. The flavor had some good parts, the apple cider, the ginger, but I think the beet was a mistake. It added a certain earthiness and a lot of grit/fiber (that could have also come from the fresh ginger, but there wasn’t much added). The color separation, the frothy top in the picture, thats all a cloud of fiber and bubbles. I think I’ll try another one with the watercress and spinach, but not again with beets. 
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After to last few successes, I was feeling bold, and decided to push the limits. I tried to do an entirely vegetable set with apple cider; all I can say is I don’t recommend it. The flavor had some good parts, the apple cider, the ginger, but I think the beet was a mistake. It added a certain earthiness and a lot of grit/fiber (that could have also come from the fresh ginger, but there wasn’t much added). The color separation, the frothy top in the picture, thats all a cloud of fiber and bubbles. I think I’ll try another one with the watercress and spinach, but not again with beets. 

An unusual mix of veggies and fruits, adding carob powder (which tastes like cocoa powder) allows you to increase veggies without ending up with something unpalatable. All in all, pretty nutritious and tasty. 
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An unusual mix of veggies and fruits, adding carob powder (which tastes like cocoa powder) allows you to increase veggies without ending up with something unpalatable. All in all, pretty nutritious and tasty.