Red Lentil Soup that is a pretty orange

 

Red Lentil Soup with a Spicy Sizzle

Ingrédients serves 8

6 teaspoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil, divided

2 onions, chopped (1 1/2 cups)

3 clove(s) garlic, minced

2 teaspoon(s) ground cumin

8 cup(s) reduced-sodium chicken broth, or vegetable broth

1 1/2 cup(s) red lentils, rinsed (see Tip)

1/3 cup(s) bulgur

2 tablespoon(s) tomato paste

1 bay leaf

3 tablespoon(s) lemon juice ( I put half a lemon juice)

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon(s) paprika

1 teaspoon(s) cayenne pepper (I put ½ teaspoon)

-Directions

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cumin; cook for 1 minute. Add broth, lentils, bulgur, tomato paste and bay leaf; bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover and cook over low heat until the lentils and bulgur are very tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Discard the bay leaf.

2. Ladle about 4 cups of the soup into a food processor and puree. Return the pureed soup to the soup pot and heat through. Stir in lemon juice and season with pepper.

3. Just before serving, ladle the soup into bowls. Heat the remaining 4 teaspoons oil in a small skillet and stir in paprika and cayenne. Drizzle about 1/2 teaspoon of the sizzling spice mixture over each bowlful and serve immediately. (I added the mixture directly to the soup)

4. Tip: You can replace red lentils with brown lentils; add 1/2 cup water and simmer 40 to 45 minutes.

Marketing to kids

So how many of you think of your favorite candy when you think of Halloween. Those Reese's peanut butter cups, or getting a full size Hershey bar, the crunch of a Kit Kat. Well, the holiday has turned into a huge marketing scheme. Why else do they put Halloween candy out next to the Sept. School supplies. People make sure that they have bought those favorite brand names to give to kids so that they are handing out the best candy. But those kids are the ones that are really being influeneced. They are being branded. They are being taught to buy certain labels and brand names at a young age, and the joy and excitement if the holiday are instantly connected with those brand names. Market strategies are designed around this and they know that they are teaching kids to buy their brand for life. Kids will then seek out these top brand names at stores and find those sweet, sugary, addictive treats to experience those same feelings of joy and excitement that they felt on Halloween night. They are being conditioned at such an early age. Your kids are being used to secure a companies success. Hmmmm, how do you feel about that?

Stop the branding of kids. Stop making them addicted to these sweets and slaves to these companies. Be cautious about what they are exposed to. My kids think of Halloween and can't wait for roasted pumpkin seeds, because we have made such wonderful memories of making them together and eating them every year. They look forward to the butternut squash soup I will serve on Halloween night and the pumpkin bread they will eat and leave for The Switch Witch. You have control over your eating and health.... Use it.

Why it is important to educate your child's teacher

Why do I post every year that people should be getting a copy of The Switch Witch for their kid's teachers?

Teachers have a lot of power. They are with our kids for a good portion of the day. We ask our kids to listen to them. They have control over who gets to go out to recess and who doesn't. Basically if a teacher says something is true, your kid will believe it.  So when your child comes in to school to tell his best friend about how The Switch Witch is coming to his house on Halloween night and his friend disputes it, or may even tease him that there is no such thing.....you need the teacher to validate your child and help to keep the myth alive. You need that teacher to back you up! Just like if your child had a different cultural, religious, health, etc. beliefs or mannerisms, you would want to explain them to the teacher so she can be supportive and encouraging. The same goes for The Switch Witch! 

So pass it on....

Tis the season for my favorite butternut squash soup

1/2 stick of butter ( you can use margarine or Olivi coconut spread)

1 large onion

2 celery ribs

1clove of garlic

1 can of vegetable or chicken broth

1 butternut squash, cooked, cooled, seeded)

1cup of milk, we use original almond milk unsweetened

1 tsp. of salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

And if you like kick add a bit of crushed red pepper

Sauté the onion and garlic and celery(cut up), the add the butternut squash, etc. 

Stir in broth, cook, uncovered for 15 mins. Add milk and spices. 

Turn off heat, pour in blender, purée. 

Healthy St. pat's and no green food coloring!

Hey, check out this pin on Pinterest: St. patrick's day snack. Healthy snack with green peppers!

http://pinterest.com/pin/172192385725177797/

-Charity

"Be the change you wish to see in the world."
-Gandhi

Baby Candy Switch

So our 1 year old needed a switch for her candy that would also help her be creative. I made homemade play dough and shaped it into a pumpkin. Not gluten free, but otherwise great for baby's creativity!

-Charity

"Be the change you wish to see in the world."
-Gandhi

Some Witchey Math

The Book of Perfectly Perilous Math: 24 Death-Defying Challenges for Young Mathematicians

By Sean Connelly

Great fun for Halloween learning....