the week ahead ...

"kitchen sink" juice ... I literally fill up the kitchen sink with veggies!

... promises to be an interesting one!

I dropped Dave off at the airport early this morning heading to a conference in Albuquerque for the week ... which means an entire week of Kathy Time!  While I don't really like Dave being gone for such a stretch, I'm going to seize this opportunity with a firm grip and get some stuff done.

First on the agenda when I got home was to make juice ... I emptied out the fridge for a small batch of my "kitchen sink" juice to start with, but I'll be heading out to the grocery store to stock up a load of veggies and goodies for a cleansing week.  I'm planning a vegan week and can't wait to try some new things.  I had thought to lay off tea and wine for the week, but I'm kind of waffling on that one ... wine might be the easier one to let go of for a bit.  Don't think I want to deal with caffeine withdrawal ...

So far this morning I've made juice, tended the compost pile, watered my sprouting wheat grass and made my first batch of these ...

spiced pumpkin seeds ... super yummy and good for you!

I've bought something similar from a local maker that sets up at the farmers markets ... but that gets kind of pricey and I rarely get to the farmers markets, so I saved her ingredient list and decided to make my own.  I looked up a couple of recipes online and dove in ... they turned out delicious!  I thought I would share the recipe, such at it is, with you.  Here you go, try to use all organic ingredients ...

Preheat the oven to 350F and have a large cookie sheet ready

• 2 cups pumpkin seeds
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil (melted)
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 heaping tablespoon moringa powder
• 1 tablespoon tumeric
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ground black pepper ... maybe 1/2 to 1 teaspoon

Mix the spices in a small bowl and set aside.  In a large bowl, toss the pumpkin seeds with the oil so they're well coated.  Then mix the spice blend into the seeds and spread evenly onto the cookie sheet.  Bake for 8 or 9 minutes until the seeds start to puff up and brown a bit.  You'll also start to hear them pop.  Remove from the oven and allow them to cool completely before sealing in an airtight container awaiting snack time!  I use a big spoon to munch on them ... I get more of the spice mix and they're not quite so messy to eat.

I'll be checking in off and on this week, so stay tuned.  Should be interesting!

with deep gratitude ...