TO TASTE: Mustardy Mushrooms

I grew up with a very limited menu with very little produce offered to me, but began tasting and experimenting as soon as I moved out on my own. I quickly learned that I love almost all foods, but for some reason I hesitated a few years before really trying mushrooms. Fast forward: I got adventurous and and now I'm madly in love with mushrooms. I'm still playing around with them, but after I noticed a mustardy mushrooms on toast recipe from My Darling Lemon Thyme I feel much more comfortable playing around with them and whipping them up with whatever I have on hand.

HOW: All I do is plop some (dairy-free; woe is me) butter in the pan with some sliced mushrooms and garlic and cook em until the juices really start coming together. Then I add some mustard and pepper and serve them on toast with a squeeze of lemon juice.

Simple, nutritious, delicious food.

P.S. Local (West Michigan) readers: have any of you tried the Urban Mushroom CSA yet? There's a rolling CSA open now, They're doing a lot of amazing things providing a sustainable local food source and  reducing waste, and we're lucky to have them!

Fortune Cookies

Did you know Young Blood Old Soul is on Instagram? 

Check it out!!

the good life

we love our farmers market!

we're so lucky to have such amazing resources for healthy eating and living. use them!

take the 10x10 pledge to support your local food system:

you're welcome,

nicole

p.s. see what's fresh this week here.

urban homestead

this is a little tour of my home.

(really, it's just random photos that have been taken this summer here and there.)

important disclaimers:

1) my apartment is in an awesome old house that has never been flipped or really renovated. some things aren't in the greatest condition. there is lots of paint peeling and sad beige paint in some rooms, but it is beautiful and cozy, and i think it looks great. you'll just have to ignore the age spots. they'll get fixed up soon.

2) for some reason, my point and shoot camera has been taking very low quality photos... they look like instagram. i don't really mind, but thought you should know, they will look like they were taken in the seventies, and not just because there's an impressive record collection and velvet furniture. rest assured, my darling and talented bff, jamie coffin of the cuckoo bird blog, will be taking much more professional pictures in the near future. 

 i reorganized my closet a bit... there's a dreamy hanging lamp to the left that you can't see. this will be changed around soon, now that i have an extra closet(!!), so maybe it'll be better when jamie comes to take photos.

 my cozy couchsurfing couch.

 so sweet. on my new favorite blanket that grandma and grandpa brought back from mexico years ago.

 this is what i see when i wake up in the morning.

game night in the dining room on mother's day.

 this kid can make anything look good...

parts of my kitchen just make me smile. this counter top is falling apart and its paint is peeling but it's still cheerful and sweet.

 yumm: shrimp, green beans, and onions cooked in trader joe's delicious soyaki sauce.

 herbs in waiting, from the farmers market.

herbs halfway planted at dusk.

 another amazing dinner we whipped up. brats, cilantro lime corn, and rosemary potatoes. with grapefruit shandies.

and nowww, i plan on posting more regularly with all the random lovely summer happenings, so stay tuned.

love, nicole

brussel sprouts!

Yesterday we celebrated my Grandma's birthday (which is today~Happy Birthday Grandma!!) with a big dinner at her house. I made these brussel sprouts which I tried for the first time last month. Since it was a new recipe for a lot of us I'm sharing it here. (For my auntie and mama especially!)

This is Gwyneth Paltrow's recipe; I found it on the Food Coma blog:

Needed: 1 pound brussels sprouts, 2-3 tablespoons olive oil, a few heavy pinches of sea salt, and a lemon for serving.

First you need to trim your sprouts if they have too much stem. Then steam them for 6-7 minutes until they are just beginning to turn bright green. Next you need to brown them in a shallow skillet with olive oil over medium/high heat. Lay them in the pan in one layer and just let them cook for 4-5 minutes. You can shake the pan a bit to make sure they don’t stick, but resist the temptation to flip them early. You want to get them slightly crispy, but try not too burn them. Then flip and cook an additional 3 minutes. I had to cook mine in two batches as my pan wasn’t large enough to fit them all.

Just before serving drizzle on a bit more olive oil, sprinkle on the sea salt, and squeeze on the juice from a lemon.

 Yesterday I skipped steaming them and baked them instead of cooking them in a pan. They turned out just as good, I put them in a 400 degree oven for 10 minutes on one side then 10 on the other and let them get blackened a little bit.

Mmmm, I want more right now....

Eat your veggies, kids!

love, nico.

Shushi love.

  Saturday night Tony took me out to Marado for sushi.. It's my favorite!!!

 My camera died before he could take any pictures of me. They wouldn't have been as entertaining, I can tell you that.

(A note about sushi for those a-feared: it's so goooooooooood. Eel rolls are my favorite thing in the whole wide world. And if you're ever freaked  about raw fish, don't get rolls with raw fish! They deep fry them too. Yes, that's right. Yum. Also, the condiments are great. I don't even eat spicy stuff, but I adore a bit of wasabi. By the way, Tony makes sushi. It's definitely a perk.)

We're going out for drinks tonight. I haven't picked where yet. Downtown has a ton of great options. Any suggestions? (Assuming I don't just buy a pint of cheap whiskey and beg for sushi again. ...It's been known to happen.)

There's a great show at the DAAC tonight:

The Wealthy Orphans with the Wonder Wagon!!
Rapid GrowthMedia

Cheers, Nico

um, yum!

Dirty Pirate Popsicle

found via Endless Simmer

• 2 1/2 cups Coke
• 1/3 cup Captain Morgan Spiced Rum
• 1/3 cup Kahlua

Instructions:

1. Place all ingredients in a large glass and stir to combine. Pour mixture into popsicles mold.
2.  Freeze for about 2 hours or until mixture starts to solidify enough to hold a popsicle stick upright. Insert popsicle sticks and finish freezing popsicles overnight. To release popsicles run hot water on the outside of popsicle molds for a 2-3 seconds.

*Slightly flat Coke will produce a popsicle that stays frozen longer. To quickly and manually flatten out the carbonation, empty out enough Coke from a 2-liter bottle to leave a 3-inch space from top of bottle to top of coke. Place cap back on and shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Set aside to leave bubbles to subside.