The urge to fit in stunted me for a lot of my life. I used to say I saw movies I hadn't seen, agree to things I didn't want to do, dress like others and want to be just like them. How daunting a task it was. I was always afraid someone would find out that I wasn't anything like they thought I was. Dear God if they started to recite a line from a movie I hadn't seen; bells would start ringing in my head. Abort, abort!! I would play it off like I knew and nod in agreement but inside I was trembling. They will know I'm a fraud I would think with wide eyes. I'm sure I sufficated many friends with my desire to be just like them.
Now I've learned that being myself is the greatest gift I can give to me. Sometimes I find myself wanting to shrink to other people's standards or not draw too much attention to myself. It can be a little nerve racking making the leap of letting go of what others think of me. I don't know if I'll ever fully let it go but I try. I go out saying, "Fuck it I'm going to be me." Then a gush of wind throws me back and my lips start quivering because I'm scared nobody likes me. And it can happen in a split second.
The magic happens when I dust myself off and start again. I'm going to try to be me again today. I may think I see judgement in others eyes but maybe that is just my reflection staring back. The first person I have to come to accept is me. I can't look for it in others but inside myself. Now I've learned to say, "no I haven't seen that movie, " "I don't like that," and "that's good for you but not for me." You will find me dressing up for occasions because I believe there is no better day than today to feel beautiful. I will sport my tattoos with pride because they tell a story of my life. And I will be my quirky self even if it gets me a few awkward smiles.
Take a deep breath before you leave your house and know the world is waiting to meet you.
Both the recipes below are great when you have lots of lemons. There is a bounty of lemons right now where I live so what better way to use them than in multiple recipes that compliment each other.
Now I've learned that being myself is the greatest gift I can give to me. Sometimes I find myself wanting to shrink to other people's standards or not draw too much attention to myself. It can be a little nerve racking making the leap of letting go of what others think of me. I don't know if I'll ever fully let it go but I try. I go out saying, "Fuck it I'm going to be me." Then a gush of wind throws me back and my lips start quivering because I'm scared nobody likes me. And it can happen in a split second.
The magic happens when I dust myself off and start again. I'm going to try to be me again today. I may think I see judgement in others eyes but maybe that is just my reflection staring back. The first person I have to come to accept is me. I can't look for it in others but inside myself. Now I've learned to say, "no I haven't seen that movie, " "I don't like that," and "that's good for you but not for me." You will find me dressing up for occasions because I believe there is no better day than today to feel beautiful. I will sport my tattoos with pride because they tell a story of my life. And I will be my quirky self even if it gets me a few awkward smiles.
Take a deep breath before you leave your house and know the world is waiting to meet you.
Both the recipes below are great when you have lots of lemons. There is a bounty of lemons right now where I live so what better way to use them than in multiple recipes that compliment each other.
Rosemary Lemon Sourdough bread
Thank you Six Sisters' Stuff for this recipe. I modified it with the rosemary, lemon zest and less sugar. Got to put my little spin on things. It is a great recipe and very easy to make. I don't know if it gets much better than warm fresh bread.
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups of warm water
2 Tablespoons dry active yeast
2 Tablespoons of sugar
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
6 cups of all-purpose flour (I like organic flour)
1 Tablespoon of finely chopped rosemary
Zest from one lemon
Instructions:
1. In a large bowl mix together water, yeast, and sugar until the yeast is dissolved. Once the the yeast is dissolved add in salt, oil, and flour. Stir with a wooden spoon or I like doing it with my hands. After all ingredients are fully mixed knead dough for two minutes.
2. Drizzle a little olive oil in a bowl and swirl it around to coat the whole bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and cover with a dish towel. Let it rise till it has doubled its size.
3. Once dough has risen, flour a surface and place on top. Cut dough in half. You can either make a long tradition french bread shape or round. If you would ridges in your bread like the picture take a sharp knife and slice about 1/3 of the way down into the bread. They will separate more as they rise and bake.
4. Place dough loaves on a greased cookie sheet and let it rise again until it doubles its size. (About a half a hour) Bake at 375˚ for 20-30 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
5. Remove bread from oven and you if you like rub the top with butter or you can omit this. Let it rest for a 10-15 minutes before cutting into or it will be hard to cut.
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups of warm water
2 Tablespoons dry active yeast
2 Tablespoons of sugar
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
6 cups of all-purpose flour (I like organic flour)
1 Tablespoon of finely chopped rosemary
Zest from one lemon
Instructions:
1. In a large bowl mix together water, yeast, and sugar until the yeast is dissolved. Once the the yeast is dissolved add in salt, oil, and flour. Stir with a wooden spoon or I like doing it with my hands. After all ingredients are fully mixed knead dough for two minutes.
2. Drizzle a little olive oil in a bowl and swirl it around to coat the whole bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and cover with a dish towel. Let it rise till it has doubled its size.
3. Once dough has risen, flour a surface and place on top. Cut dough in half. You can either make a long tradition french bread shape or round. If you would ridges in your bread like the picture take a sharp knife and slice about 1/3 of the way down into the bread. They will separate more as they rise and bake.
4. Place dough loaves on a greased cookie sheet and let it rise again until it doubles its size. (About a half a hour) Bake at 375˚ for 20-30 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
5. Remove bread from oven and you if you like rub the top with butter or you can omit this. Let it rest for a 10-15 minutes before cutting into or it will be hard to cut.
Zesty Pasta with kale, butternut squash and artichoke hearts
A really refreshing and simple recipe. The zest really brings it all together!
Ingredients:
8 oz of fettuccine pasta
1 can of artichoke hearts, chopped
1 medium butternut squash, cubed
3 cups of kale, chopped
Zest of one lemon
1-2 teaspoons of lemon juice
2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350˚. Peel and clean out seeds of butternut squash. Cut into cubes. Place on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Mix butternut squash till all the pieces are coated with olive oil. Dash some salt on top of the butternut squash. Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. Flipping one time.
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once water is boiling add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. While butternut squash and pasta are cooking chop the kale, artichoke hearts and zest the lemon.
3. Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Once pan is warm add kale, saute 1-3 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice more if you desire to the pan. Sprinkle with salt. Add the artichoke hearts to just warm them up for a minute. Place kale and artichokes hearts in a large bowl.
4. Drain and rinse the pasta. Add to the pasta to the bowl with kale and artichoke hearts then add butternut squash. Sprinkle in the zest and Parmesan cheese. Put a dash of salt and pepper to your liking. Mix all ingredients.
Serve and enjoy with your fresh french bread.
Breath in the aromas of the food and think about how you are awesome just as you are!
Ingredients:
8 oz of fettuccine pasta
1 can of artichoke hearts, chopped
1 medium butternut squash, cubed
3 cups of kale, chopped
Zest of one lemon
1-2 teaspoons of lemon juice
2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350˚. Peel and clean out seeds of butternut squash. Cut into cubes. Place on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Mix butternut squash till all the pieces are coated with olive oil. Dash some salt on top of the butternut squash. Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. Flipping one time.
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once water is boiling add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. While butternut squash and pasta are cooking chop the kale, artichoke hearts and zest the lemon.
3. Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Once pan is warm add kale, saute 1-3 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice more if you desire to the pan. Sprinkle with salt. Add the artichoke hearts to just warm them up for a minute. Place kale and artichokes hearts in a large bowl.
4. Drain and rinse the pasta. Add to the pasta to the bowl with kale and artichoke hearts then add butternut squash. Sprinkle in the zest and Parmesan cheese. Put a dash of salt and pepper to your liking. Mix all ingredients.
Serve and enjoy with your fresh french bread.
Breath in the aromas of the food and think about how you are awesome just as you are!
RSS Feed