Subsistence Fishing

Fishing has become an integral part of our lives here in the bush. Fishing, particularly subsistence fishing, is a huge part of village life. Stores are extremely expensive, if they exist at all, so many families still depend on hunting, fishing, and gathering to supplement their diets. Aside from the availability issues, it's also a huge part of their cultural society.

As a life-long vegetarian I knew that my options for eating fresh fruits and veggies would be limited, while fishing would likely be a part of our routine, and that my diet would potentially have to shift. I had come to terms with this ahead of time and decided to fully embrace becoming pescatarian (I'm only eating seafood that we catch, and will still be eating vegetarian/vegan outside of the village). I came to the bush with the intention of embracing the culture and lifestyles of my new community, which includes subsistence activities.

Cody and I have been trying to learn about the culture of subsistence living as much as we can.  Because of that, we've been homemaking more food, picking berries, and fishing 1-2 times per week. Fishing here is much different than fishing back home.  We don't go out with a tackle box and poles. There are no slow, lazy trips around a calm lake. 

Instead, we use a fishing net that is attached to a pulley system on the beach.  At low tide, the net gets pulled out. Then, at high tide you head back down to the beach. The net is lined with bobbers, which jump around in the water as soon as a fish hits the net.  As fish hit the net we reel it in and pick them out of it. As the fish get picked from the net they are then immediately filleted. Sue and Al, our school cook and his wife, have graciously taken us under their wing and been teaching us the right way to catch, fillet, and prepare the fish. We've typically been getting 10-15 fish a day when we go out, and then we take them home to vacuum seal and freeze them.  However, Sue and Al have also been showing us how to smoke and can the fish too.

So far, this has been a great way for us to supplement our giant food costs.  All of our groceries have to be shipped in or purchased at our store (to give an idea - milk is $20/gallon and cookies are $10/package, while fresh options don't even exist) and having something we can get for free has been helpful. We've been enjoying learning different ways to prepare salmon and trout, which are the two kinds of fish we've been catching.

Subsistence fishing is just another adventure in our lives out here in bush Alaska. We came into this experience with the intention of trying new things and generally being "yes" people, and so far I think we've been doing a pretty good job of fulfilling that intention. 

Your turn...What are some new things you've said "yes" to lately? 

Currently listening to... Fire at the Pageant - The Felice Brothers

Apple Pizza

Mondays mean cooking class for all of the early elementary students (kindergarten-3rd grade) at my school.  We are very lucky that a wonderful retired teacher comes into our school once a week to cook with students from 2:00-3:15.  My class always looks forward to cooking and eating delicious treats. Some of the older students even beg to join from time to time, which means it must be a blast.

A couple of weeks ago the class tried a recipe sooooo delicious (yes, I stole a bite) that I had to recreate it at home. The recipe was for apple pizza.

Apple Pizza
1 package biscuit dough
5 small or 3 large apples
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 T cinnamon
2 T flour
3 T butter
Directions: Mix dry ingridients together. Roll biscuits flat on a cookie sheet. Cover with chopped apples. Sprinkle dry ingridients on top of apples. Dot with butter. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Hello, beautiful dessert! I actually added a little Asiago cheese on top of mine for a little added melt-y goodness. When my students made it at school they served it with vanilla ice cream, which was sheer amazing-ness. Both ways (cheese or ice cream) are super tasty!

Your turn...What are some of your favorite treats to cook?
Currently listening to...Mountain Sound - Of Monsters and Men

Unseasonably Warm Alaska

We've been experiencing some downright unseasonably warm weather this month.  It's been in the 40's for weeks! And, we finally saw the sun for two days this weekend, which had been hiding from us for the better part of a month.  I was doubting it would ever return.  Thankfully, I was mistaken!

Cody and I spent this beautiful weekend outside as much as possible.  We actually grilled on Friday, Saturday, AND Sunday.  We have gone grill crazy.  It's one of my favorites though.  Cody usually grills meat for himself but I usually do potatoes, zucchini, asparagus, and a mishmash of other goodies. Serve with chips and salsa.  Voila! Perfect snack-y meal!

This weekend really improved my mood and outlook.  I am one of those people who tends to get the winter blues.  And, after a miserable December (we had 60ish inches of snow), a beautiful visit home to see my family, and then an entire month of monsoon-like rain I was feeling pretty blue and nostalgic for home.  This weekend was just what the doctor ordered! It was sunny so I made the most of it every day.  I spent Friday night grilling outside, all day Saturday with friends hiking/cooking outside, and I have a lunch date downtown with a teacher friend today.  Thank goodness for the sun!!

Questions:
What is the weather like in your neighborhood?
Does the sun/crummy weather affect your mood?
How do you fight the winter blues? 

Fireweed Jelly Recipe

Fireweed Jelly Recipe
8cups of packed petals (no leaves!)
 5cups sugar
2packets OR 7tbs of Pectin
1/4cup lemon juice
4 1/2cups water

Directions: Place petals, lemon juice, and water in a large pan.  Bring water to a boil.  Once boiling, set the timer for 10minutes, stir frequently to avoid burning petals.  Petals will begin to loose their color and the water will turn a deep purple.  Remove from heat and strain out petals.  MAKE SURE TO SAVE THE JUICE.  I strained my juice into a large glass bowl.  Then, return juice to the original pan and heat on medium.  Add all of the pectin at once and stir.  Bring back to a boil and add sugar.  Make sure to return the mixture to a boil for about 5minutes after adding sugar.  Remove from heat and distribute into hot mason jars.  Begin the processing (aka boiling the jars to make sure they seal).

There you have it folks! I am an official Alaskan…kind of, ha ha.   I collect my own berries, make my own jams, catch my own fish…seriously?! The jelly turned out amazing.  I couldn't have asked for a more successful first attempt at jelly making.  Sadly, a few of my jars didn't seal so I will be re-processing a few of them.  However, for a first attempt I am pretty impressed with myself.  I actually did a happy dance around the kitchen (much to Cody's amusement).  I can't take total credit for the recipe though.  I snagged it from this blog, which was recommended to me by a friend who frequently makes her own jelly. Woo-hoo for awesome jelly!

Questions:
Have you ever done any canning? Made your own jelly?
If you have your own jelly recipe, share it!

Smoked Salmon Pizza

Today I thought that I would post a very "Alaska-ish" recipe that will appease my meat-eating friends and family.  While I do not eat meat, Cody does (only organic and mostly local).  I came home from work on Wednesday night to find him cooking this tasty-looking pizza.  It isn't necessarily the most healthy (unless you count the fish) because of the gobs of cheese but it was apparently VERY tasty.  So, here is the recipe for Smoked Salmon Pizza.

Ingredients
1 smoked salmon fillet
1 pizza crust (pre-made, homemade, any kind works)
Marinara or Tomato Sauce
Alfredo Sauce
Mozzarella Medallions (natural, old-school mozzarella chunks)
Any additional cheese (Cody used a mix of cheddar and parmesan)
Spices (of your choosing)

Directions: Pre-heat oven per crust directions.  Shred the salmon fillet.  Mix the two sauces together and spread on the crust.  Top with shredded salmon, spices, and cheeses.  Cook per crust directions (ours took about 15minutes). Enjoy!

Cody gave the pizza great reviews! He used locally caught Sockeye Salmon for the pizza but I am sure that any kind would work well.  Let me know if anybody tries it out with other fish/salmon types!


Next up in my "Recipe's to Post Queue" are…

Potato Soup Bread Bowls

Homemade (Healthy) Mozzarella Sticks

Questions:
Do you LOVE pizza? If not, why????? 
Would you ever try Smoked Salmon Pizza?
What is a recipe that you are loving right now? 

Age of the iPhone & Other Grown Up Things

This weekend I truly learned how old I am….I woke up at 7am two days in a row, without an alarm clock.  Why????  I really thought that I could still do the whole sleeping until 11am thing (college didn't prepare me for waking up before noon).

Saturday and Sunday were relatively uneventful.  We went car shopping, which was a fun and very grown-up activity.  We are debating between these two cars.  We originally wanted a Jeep/SUV but they all ended up being waaaaay out of our price range.

Hyundai Accent
Kia Optima

Saturday we did a little bit of lounging, a lot of cleaning, and a bit of walking on the beach.  We took Specks out and he was in puppy heaven!

Isn't he the cutest?!?

Sunday we both went and got new phones.  And, drumroll please….I HAVE JOINED THE 21ST CENTURY!!! I finally got an iPhone.  I have been putting off upgrading to an iphone for about five years.  I just wasn't sure what all the fuss was about.  But, after spending the last year being the proud owner borrower of a MacBookPro (I steal Cody's because it rules) I knew I needed to upgrade to an Apple product.  We shall see how it goes!

Look at this amazing picture-courtesy of my iphone camera :) 

Saturday and Sunday were awesome eating days. Breakfasts were delicious egg sandwiches, fakin' bacon, and GF waffles both days.  Sadly, I don't have a picture of Saturdays dinner meal.  We had Tofu Steak with Rice and Zucchini casserole.  It was delicious.  Tonight the menu consists of some Potato&Veggie Soup.  Recipe to come soon :)

Vegan Potato Soup-during the cooking phase.

Question: Do you have an iPhone/Apple products?  If so, do you like them? 

Stress Cooking

This week was…stressful, to say the least.  Cody and I both had insane work weeks and came home completely pooped each night.  Needless to say, blogging was not on my mind.  Cooking was far from my mind as well.  My days consisted of waking up, going to work, running errands, cooking dinner, and going straight to bed.  None of this makes for particularly interesting blog entries.  At any rate, I still had to make some meals this week.  Here were three of my favorite meals from breakfast, lunch, and dinner this week.


 


Breakfast: Open-face fried egg and fakin' bacon sandwiches.  Made with Silver Hills Bread (Vegan), organic eggs, and MorningStar fakin' bacon.  It was topped with some Cairo BBQ Sauce, which Cody's parents sent us in the mail because it is a local sauce.

Lunch: GF wrap with smoked tofurkey, kale, spinach, onions, and tomatoes.  I topped this with a little bit of Roasted Garlic Sauce from BWW (also mailed to us by Cody's parents).  I ate it with some Kettle Chips and Light & Fit Greek Yogurt.







Dinner:  Chik'n Patties on Vegan Bread.  Cody topped his with just cheese,  I had mine with cheese and veggies.  Served with a side of Annie's Mac N' Cheese.  Quick, easy, and delicious.

Obviously we were slacking a bit on the cooking this week.  We are hoping this weekend we can get back in the healthy-cooking groove.  Wish us luck!  In the meantime I plan on continuing to look something like this….

Picture courtesy of Cody.  Payback to come. 

Thursday Thoughts: 02/21/2013

Hola Readers!!

I am sharing my Thursday Thoughts, aka whatever I am thinking, with you this week.  It isn't anything too terribly interesting.  But, it is the basics of my little adventure here on the last frontier.

1.)  Weather in Alaska RULES compared to what my friends back home are dealing with.  My parents (Northern IL) are enjoying arctic temperatures while my college friends (Southern IL) are getting pelted with a snowstorm (insert evil laughter here).  I love being able to laugh about our 40F days and occasionally perfect winter weather while everyone down south is buried in snow.

This is from 6am…they are now buried in snow! Muhahaha.

2.)  I am loving Italian food right now.  I made Baked Veggie Ziti for dinner last night and I couldn't get enough of it so I ended up taking it as leftovers for lunch today.  Recipe to come!  In the meantime, enjoy some of these other great Italian food links that contributed to my creation.

Vegan Baked Ziti from Food.com
Awesome Vegan Baked Ziti from YourVeganMom.com
Ooey-Gooey Baked Ziti from The"V"Word.com


3.) Is it Friday yet?? I am so ready for the weekend.  Cody and I are hoping to buy a new car this weekend and get in some good old fashioned hiking as well.  Enjoy this funny hiking picture from last weekend.

Cody "attempting" to climb this random ladder. 

4.) I got to play with Dudley the Dental Dinosaur today!! This beautiful dino-beast came to my school today to talk to my classes about good oral hygiene.  It was sooooo cute! The kids loved the dinosaur and the dental office that sponsored him brought free toothbrushes for all of the kiddos.  Fellow teachers, take advantage of local resources!

Dudley the Dino!

Enjoy the rest of your week friends! I shall return with recipes and weekend shenanigans this weekend!

Kale & Tomato Strata

This week I needed something delicious, healthy, and simple to eat after work (and to take in my lunch as leftovers!).  This dish was purrrfect.  I was full, happy, and healthy.  It makes your entire house smell amazing.  I ended up sharing it with our neighbors because I couldn't eat the entire pan.  It was super filling and kept me going for hours.  Definitely suggest trying it out-especially if you are an egg lover.

Ingredients

1/3 loaf of bread (I used honey wheat, but sourdough is ideal) 

1/2 tomato (large)

2-3 large kale leaves 

2 eggs

2cups of greek yogurt (plain) 

1/2cup of water 

Onions (optional-to taste) 

Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Salt

Pepper 

Basil and/or rosemary 

Parmesan Cheese 

Nutritional Yeast 

Directions:  In a baking pan place bread, cubed.  Sprinkle with olive oil and broil (low) for five minutes.  Remove pan from the oven and change the temperature to 350F.  Spread tomatoes (cubed), kale (shredded), and onion slices evenly throughout the baking pan.  In a mixing bowl combine all other ingredients.  Mix well.  Pour mixture evenly throughout pan (soaking bread and veggies).  Top with nutritional yeast and cheese. Place in oven for 30minutes.  Serve hot! 

Weekend Eats

Here is a collection of my favorite eats this weekend.  It was a dreary weekend so I focused on hearty and healthy recipes to keep us warm, dry, and happy.

Breakfast led me to these guys all weekend.  Have any of you tried this brand of waffles? Best instant waffles I have ever had.  No guilt about eating them either.  All natural, gluten-free, no preservatives…woo!!  Just top with a little organic, low-sugar maple syrup and a little Earth Balance.  Enjoy!

Van's Waffles…Yummm! 

I also enjoyed this delicious quiche for breakfast this weekend.  I normally don't eat much in the way of eggs but our wonderful neighbors made these and dropped them by for Cody and I.  They are fans of making me vegetarian cuisine so I am always in heaven when they bring food by!

The one on the left is veggie and the one on the
right is for carnivores. 

Lunches were composed of some of these delicious options: pesto pasta, leftovers, PB&J's, and sauteed veggies with rice.

Pesto Pasta topped with a little bit of fresh Parmesan.  

Dinners were composed of delicious vegetarian chili and my old standby of Vegan Cheesy Rice & Broccoli casserole, which I posted the recipe for here.  Overall it was a tasty weekend!

Spicy Chilli
3cups water
2cups No-Chicken broth (sodium free)
1cup of salt-free tomato puree
1 1/2 cup of quinoa
2cups of black beans (uncooked-soaked)
1cup of corn (frozen)
1cup of green beans (frozen)
1tbs garlic
1/2cup peppers (jalepeno, green, red, etc.)
Pepper
Red Pepper
Onion Powder
Seasoned Salt


What were your favorite weekend meals??

Rainy Day Coffee and Snacks

This week the weather has been bad abysmal!  Mother nature is confusing.  It has been raining and thirty.  I normally don't mind the rain, but weeks of it without reprieve gets a little depressing.  Here is the one beautiful picture I was able to take this week (during our twenty minutes of somewhat-sun).  The rest of them were just icky and rainy.

View from my porch on our one sunny-ish day. 

To combat the rainy weather I needed something sweet and warm to drink this morning.  Regular coffee was NOT going to cut through my rainy day blues.  So I tried out something a little different with my coffee.  Future barista?  I think so.

Delicious Coffee Recipe
1 steaming cup of coffee
1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
1tsp of powdered sugar
Dash of cinnamon

Topping:  Whip heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar together until it thickens.  Pour (small amount) into steaming cup of delicious coffee.  Top with cinnamon.  Makes enough for the entire pot of coffee.

Mmmmm…..who doesn't love a steaming cup of coffee?






Another of my rainy day favorites is natural popped popcorn.  I just top it with some cracked pepper, a hint of salt, and a little melted Earth Balance.  Healthy, easy, and delicious.  It can also be done with some seasoned salt and/or red pepper for a little spicy treat.














What are your favorite rainy day meals??  Leave me a comment and let me know!

Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Biscuits

I woke up waaay before Cody did this morning so I decided to whip up a tasty treat for us to eat for  breakfast.  I made my vegetarian version of the Bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit.  Enjoy the recipe :)

Ingredients
Egg Whites (or egg substitute)
Soy Milk or Organic 2% Milk
Biscuits, English Muffins, or Bread
Onions
Green Peppers
Cheese or Cheese Substitute
Salt
Pepper
Hot Sauce (Optional)


Eggs
1 1/2 cup egg whites
1/4 cup soy milk
Dash of Salt
Dash of Pepper

Whisk all "egg" ingredients together in a small mixing bowl.  Then, choose one of two ways to prepare.  Prep 1: Pour egg mixture into an already warmed skillet.  Cook into a basic omelet.  Prep 2:  Pour egg mixture into a muffin tin.  Fill each individual hole about 3/4 of the way to the top.  Bake at 350F for 15 minutes.

**Prep2 makes perfectly round eggs while Prep1 requires you to cut them into pieces to fit on to the biscuits.

Then,  place the eggs on the biscuits. Add some chopped veggies, some tasty cheese, and spicy hot sauce. Finish off this meal by topping it with some Fakin' Bacon and TA-DA!! You now have a delicious and extremely quick morning meal.  This meal can be adjusted to be even healthier VERY easily (leave off the cheese, serve without the biscuits or on english muffins, and etc).

When served with some Holiday Cheer (Coconut, Tropical Fruit, & Dark Rum Flavored) Kona Coffee your morning will be assuredly more wonderful.  Check out Kona Coffee here, It can be a little tricky to get your hands on.  Luckily, I get it shipped to me from my lovely sister in Hawaii :)

Delicious breakfast treats (pardon the crummy picture quality!)

Leave me a comment and let me know what you enjoyed for breakfast this weekend…. or what you think about my new layout :)

Sick Days

***This post is from last week.  I attempted to post it but my computer has suddenly decided not to upload pictures.  Ugh.  I apologize for the lack of photographic evidence.

Ok, so I didn't actually take any sick time from work.  But, I did leave an hour early on Friday because I was running a toasty 101F.  Ugh.  I despise being sick and I so rarely have to deal with colds, flu's, etc. because my immune system tends to rule.  This time I did not get so lucky.  Thursday-Saturday were pretty much spent feeling like an achy mess.  Thank goodness for Celestial Seasonings Tea (check out their wellness teas here.)

Thankfully, this afternoon I started to get my stride back (I traded the aches and temperature for a sore throat).  I took Specks out for a walk to the beach just before dark to get some fresh air.  He loved it and I managed to only fall in a few snowdrifts (typical).  It was beautiful out today though.  Warm temperatures and a beautiful amount of snow.

In the evening, Cody made it home just in time for supper.  We enjoyed some wonderful dinner treats.  We made pasta with mushroom sauce, steamed green beans (just a hint of salt and pepper to keep it healthy), and some cheesy rolls.  It was heavenly.  Check out my recipe for mushroom sauce :)

Mushroom Sauce
2 cups of No-Chicken Broth (I prefer the low-sodium choice)
1/4 cup of flour (I used whole wheat but any kind works)
3 large mushrooms (chopped)
1 tbs of minced garlic
Onions, cilantro, green peppers, and any other veggies can be added to spice it up
Dash of salt & pepper
Dash of onion powder

Directions: Heat broth and flour in a large pan on medium heat.  Whisk while heating.  When sauce begins to form a smooth consistency add additional ingredients.  Reduce heat to low and stir frequently.  When sauce thickens, remove from heat.

Dandelion Jelly

Christmas is nearly here and I couldn't be more excited.  For the first time in years I know without a doubt that we will be enjoying a white Christmas.  The best part about the holidays this year is that Cody and I have two days off together.  We never get time off together so I am extremely excited for our time.  We are planning a trip to Eaglecrest Ski Area and a trip to a local shelter to help distribute meals on Christmas Day.

In the meantime, I am enjoying my kiddos at work and all of their wonderful projects and plans that they have been doing to honor the holidays.  They have been thoroughly covering the school in glitter, beads, ribbons, and tissue paper.  We are celebrating with a Holiday Pajama Party tomorrow.  Everyone will come in the pajamas and we will eat sweet treats and enjoy watching The Polar Express (a personal favorite!)  

Dandelion Jelly (homemade).  Courtesy of a lovely kiddo at my center. 

In housing news, our oven is broken.  The broiler and stovetop work great! But, the oven won't heat.  So, while we wait patiently for the repair man to fix up our source of cooking-goodness.  We are stuck improvising and making some very random dishes.  Here is a picture of our stovetop veggie wraps and rice with peas.  It was a pretty tasty improvisation.  

Veggie wrap (sauteed vegetables and beans) with rice and peas. 

Turkey-less Thanksgiving

I enjoyed a very satisfying turkey-less Thanksgiving.  Did you??  Ok, I know most of you filled your bellies with meat this holiday and I understand.  But, for those of us who enjoy gorging ourselves on slightly more humane dishes I thought I would post my two favorite recipe's from this Thanksgiving.  One is healthy and one is a wee bit more indulgent.  Enjoy :)

Vegan Cheesy Potatoes (with a side of veggie Stuffing!) 

Vegan Cheesy Potatoes 
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 cup flour
1 cup Veggie Broth
2 tbs of Nutritional Yeast 
5 large potatoes sliced thinly 
2 cups corn flakes cereal/bread crumbs/whatever      topping you choose
2 tbs veg butter 

1/2 cup veg sour cream 
Spices Used: Onion flakes, garlic salt, crushed red pepper, salt, pepper, and basil. (Add to taste!) 

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 and lightly grease a small casserole dish.  In a separate sauce pan add butter and melt.  After the butter has melted add flour and whisk.  When the mixture is smooth add milk and broth and continue whisking.  Then, add sour cream and nutritional yeast.  Add spices to taste.  When sauce has thickened begin layering it in the casserole dish with the potatoes.  Top with cereal, break crumbs, etc.  Cook for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  

Sugar cookies aka Cody and I's late night snacks. 

Sugar Cookies 
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 
1 cup  sugar 1 cup butter (soft, not melted) 1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla 
Spices: Salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. (Add to taste)  
1 container cream cheese frosting (can be homemade if you are feeling ambitious) 
1 container of sprinkles 

Directions: Preheat oven to 400.  Combine all dry ingredients into a mixing bowl (flour, sugar, baking soda, and spices).  Mix well.  Add butter and mix thoroughly.  After mixing well add the egg and vanilla. Mix with a fork for best results!  Then, place cookies on a tray and put them into the oven for 7-9 minutes.  When the edges begin to brown pull them out.  Let them cool for twenty minutes before adding frosting and sprinkles.  

Thanksgiving in Juneau

Happy Thanksgiving from the Thompson/ Middleton gang!! Thanksgiving was a bit of a challenge this year for the two of us.  It was the first year that either of us had celebrated without our family.  Skype provided us with a chance to chat with the family live. But, we were sad to not have family around for the actual holiday and celebration.  Together, we worked really hard to make it an incredible holiday and I think we succeeded :)

In the morning we drove up to Eaglecrest Ski Area.  The ski runs and lodge aren't technically open yet so we were able to go up for free and hike/play in the snow.  Here are some amazing pictures from the trip!

Greetings from 1500ft! 

Cody being blown away by 60mph winds. 

Me, stuck in a snow drift up to my thighs. 

After our eventful morning and afternoon we tucked in to some cooking. Thanks to cooking for only two people and the lack of meat involved, we managed to cook our feast in only 2.5 hours.  We then enjoyed ourselves a vegetarian feast!

Me, posing with a pumpkin pie in our messy kitchen! 

Stuffing and  Vegan Cheesy Potatoes were just two of our dishes. 

All in all, it was a fun day.  We made the most of our time together and enjoyed making some new traditions for the holidays.  I hope everyone else had a truly wonderful Thanksgiving! Gobble, Gobble!

Specks, the family turkey! 

Cooking Cookies

Monday night turned into a cooking frenzy in my house.  I baked flourless peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies and then I moved onto making a concoction using farmer’s cheese.  Both turned out wonderfully!  Here are both of the recipes. 

Flourless Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip Cookies

◦   1 cup peanut butter or other nut butter

◦   1 cup sugar

◦   1 large eggs

◦   1/2 teaspoon vanilla

◦   1 teaspoon baking soda

◦   Pinch of salt

◦   1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (Enjoy Life chips are dairy free)

Farmer’s Cheese Concoction

◦       1 package farmers cheese

◦       2 tbsp. of unflavored Greek yogurt

◦       3 chopped radishes

◦       Green onions to taste

◦       Pinch of salt

◦       Pinch of pepper

**If you haven’t tried farmer’s cheese before, please do! It is somewhat like cottage cheese (I take it for lunch typically).  It is probiotic and very tasty!