Spring Break and Easter

Happy Late Easter!
Another big post, so we'll be splitting it up in parts. First off - spring break and Easter week. Then the next post will be about product reviews again!

Remember how we were doing a food insecurity project over spring break and could only spend a total of $16 each on food for 5 days? It was VERY tough and eye opening. Our meals were very boring; we missed being creative in the kitchen. On a more serious matter, we did not get enough calories in, so we were frequently lethargic and moody. It really made us appreciate food. Without enough energy, it was hard to focus on school work. I would think that one of the consequences of being food insecure is the limited ability to learn and perform well, which leads to a decreased likelihood of getting a quality education. What's even sadder is to think that growing children need even more calories and can't meet those needs on such a limited budget.

After the "spring break" (which wasn't really an enjoyable break at all because we had tons of hw and had to attend to our grandfather's funeral), we splurged on groceries and enjoyed being back in the kitchen.

We tried Vegan with a Vengeance's "Big Gigantoid Crunchy PB - Oatmeal Cookies", although we tweaked it to use creamy no-salt added almond butter and added dried cranberries. We also used white whole wheat flour, 1 c. unrefined cane sugar and 1/4 c. agave nectar (instead of a total of 2 cups sugar).

The cranberries were a nice addition, but the end results were way too oily and still too sweet. We tried raw cookie dough frozen, and it was actually yummy except for the oil taste. I think that this recipe was a good base for a chewy cookie, but since there is nut butter, the oil could be reduced.
We had a lot of cabbage (since cabbage is cheap and we bought it for the food insecurity project), so we made a Asian coleslaw with lime, cilantro, peanut sauce, onions, and bell peppers. It was FABULOUS, we couldn't get enough of it. Lime adds such a great elegance to dishes!


How was everyone's Easter?
Easter was a wonderful because we attended a beautiful mass and then went to visit with family. The road trip to our grandparents was absolutely beautiful - the wildflowers (Indian Red Paintbrushes, Bluebonnets, and other purple and yellow flowers) were heavenly to see. We were among fields and fields of flowers. Usually we hate to drive, especially along freeways, but this nice spring drive was an exception!



Our grandparents gave us a nice Easter treat! Instead of the usual candy, which we never cared to eat, they gave us a huge basket of ORGANIC fruits and vegetables! Organic definitely tastes better...we had our first organic cucumber (our HEB grocery store doesn't sell organic cucumbers and other veggies) and it was fabulous.

We made the East Indian Spice Cake from Soy of Cooking, and the cake was perfect for Easter celebration. We used whole grain cornmeal, slightly less ginger and nutmeg, no ground cloves, added 1/3 c. Koslowoski Farms Blueberry All-Fruit Spread(we love the flavor of this fruit spread and also love their apple butter!), and didn't use the 1/3 c. prune puree and 1/3 c. molasses. For icing we mixed powdered sugar, blueberry spread, some blueberry juice, and soymilk. A dense cake, more like a breakfast coffee cake, but the flavors were unique and spiced, and the blueberry spread made it fruity! Serve this with blueberries! This cake and the Fig Cake Newton from this cookbook are awesome, and all the recipes we've tried so far are great.

Hope you all are enjoying spring and basking in the beauty of flowers! And, Happy Late Easter!
- LK Sisters
"Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ....for it is by grace [we] have been saved, through faith....it is the gift of God." - Ephesians 2:4,8