One Coconut, Two Drinks

The other day, I had my first crack with opening a young thai coconut-literally. It was actually easier than I imagined-and this is coming from a me-a person with extremely weak arms. The way I did it is actually different than the way I saw it done in youtube videos, and I personally find it easier. Butt you can either do it my way or some other way-it doesn’t really matter.

So about the two different drinks-one is a blended mixture of the coconut meat and water, and the other is just plain coconut water straight from the source (which by the way gives me a flavorgasm every time)

Speaking of fresh coconut water-commercial coconut water sold in store has no comparison to it. The fresh kind straight from the source tastes sooooo much better.

In addition to that, the weather in Seattle has been SO HOT this past week, so a drink as hydrating as this is really great!

I like to drink the drinks in the actual coconut just because, but you can have it in a glass too. And since I”m staying at home for the most of summer, having a nice tropical drink can almost transport me to some tropical island.

I think that the tree is tropical?

Ingredients 

1 Young Thai Coconut

1 cup water

Directions

1. Put the coconut on its side, and using a chef’s knife, bring the blade down hard near the bottom of the triangle-shaped part on the top of the coconut (I like to think of a coconut shaped house, with the pointy part facing up-and the point is to chop that part off)

2. Once you get part of the outer skin indented, bring the coconut back up to its side-as you don’t want any delicious coconut water to spill out!

3. Pull of the rest of the top, and pour the coconut water through a fine mesh sieve into a large bowl

4. Using a spoon, scoop out the coconut meat and put in a separate bowl

5. In a blender, combine the coconut meat and a cup of water until smooth

6. Pour that mixture into the coconut, and drink!

7. After you’re done drinking that, you can pour the coconut water into the hollow shell and drink out of that!

How has your summer been? Are you enjoying the weather? And if you made this, let me know in the comments how it went. Also if you have any questions don’t be afraid to ask!

Vegetable Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce

This is more of a recipe inspiration post rather than an actual recipe, but I still wanted to share this.

These spring rolls are so versatile. Below in the recipe I listed what I put in mine, but you can put just about anything. The traditional version has vermicelli and usually has shrimp in it. I changed mine so that it’s vegetarian and also easier to make.

And also excuse the fact that my rolls don’t look so pretty. I put too much stuff in each and they don’t wrap up as well.

Serves 3

Ingredients:

For the roll

1/3 cup carrot shreds (I used a vegetable peeler for this)

1 mango cut into 1/2 inch slices

3 large lettuce leaves

1 sprig of mint

1 avocado, sliced

4 pieces of rice paper

sesame seeds (optional)

For the sauce

2 heaping tbsp peanut butter

2 tbsp soy sauce

juice of half a lime

1.5 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp of water (or more if you want it thinner)

Directions

1. Prepare the mango, lettuce, and avocado

2. Chiffonade the mint leaves

3. Fill a baking sheet with a thin layer of water then soak the rice paper until soft and lightly sticky

4. Put it on a flat surface and put a lettuce leaf on it. Then add a couple slices of mango, avocado, and mint. Add seasame seeds if desired.

5. Roll it up! And repeat with the other

6. For the sauce, just mix all the ingredients together until smooth

Did you make this? Do you have any other suggestions? Anything else? Let me know in the comments!

Creamy Green Smoothie

I don’t know about you, but I’ve before making this smoothie I’ve always had this aversion to green smoothies. They just always seemed “too healthy” and I know it’s not good to judge food, but they just looked like they wouldn’t taste too good. I mean, vegetables in smoothies? Really?

But the other day I was experimenting in the kitchen with making a green smoothie (I don’t really know why) and when I combined mango, banana, avocado, and spinach, I got a REALLY delicious smoothie!

The avocado and spinach flavor isn’t noticeable at all and I love it!

This smoothie is also pretty thick so it can eaten as a smoothie bowl or just drunk(?) in a mug with some milk added to thin in out.

So sorry green smoothies-y’all deserve some respect.

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen mango or pineapple chunks (I prefer frozen for the texture but fresh fruit would work too)

1/2 of an avocado, pitted

1/2 cup unpacked spinach leaves

1 medium size ripe banana

2-4 tbsp milk of choice to thin out the smoothie

1/4 cup flaxseed (optional)

1 tbsp maple syrup or other sweetener (optional)

Directions

Blend all the ingredients until smooth

I also topped mine Lemon Granola.

 

 

If you made this recipe or if you have any questions, don’t be afraid to comment. I’d love to hear what you have to say!

Chunky Tangy Lemon Granola

Happy Wednesday!

Anyways, I thought I’d start my first recipe post by making one of my favorite foods (granola) with a flavorful twist. LEMON.

I love lemons. Not only do they give food a great taste, but they’re also filled with Vitamin  C and help alkalize your body, among many other benefits.

This is a pretty simple granola, but feel free to add things other than nuts and oats, like sunflower seeds, coconut flakes, dried cranberries, etc. This also has a soft, almost cookie-like texture so feel free to bake it a little longer if you want a more crunchy granola. As for the flavor, it has a subtle lemon taste that become more prominent as you chew.

Before Baking

AFTER!!!!

Makes about 3 cups of granola

Ingredients:

zest and juice of one lemon

1 tablespoon of almond butter

2 tablespoons of honey

1 medium size ripe banana

2 and 1/4 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds)

maple syrup (to add more sweetness-optional)

1/4 cup ground flaxseed (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper

2. Mash the banana in a large bowl, then add the grated zest, juice, almond butter, and honey. Mix until smooth

3. Add the oats and nuts and optional . Mix until everything is combined. Add some maple syrup if you have a sweet tooth

4. Layer it evenly on a baking sheet and put into oven. Bake for 7-9 minutes, then take out of the oven and toss the granola lightly then bake for another 7-9 minutes.

5. Take out and let cool completely before putting it in a jar. But if you can’t resist, go eat some granola while it’s still nice and warm (basically me)

I am seriously obsessing over this granola right now. It has such a unique flavor, and really pops in just about anything. One way that it tastes super good is with some blueberries and yogurt. I had it like that this morning and it was AMAZING.

ABSOLUTE LOVE

Did you make it? How did it go? Just basically comment on anything. I’m a beginner blogger so I really don’t have any idea what I’m doing.

See Y’all next week!

Hello World!

To anyone who is reading this right now…

Hello! This is my very first blog post ever and thanks for stopping by! My name is Faye and this is where I’ll be sharing recipes, stories and my interests other interests-although none of them compare to cooking 🙂

So a little about me:

• I love food (hence the title food gusher) and love experimenting with it. This huge obsession actually started about a year ago when I changed to a vegetarian diet and followed a whole bunch of blogs for inspiration. I experimented with a lot of recipes and that led to me wanting to start my own blog.
• I love nature. Just being outside, gardening, and/or hiking are all awesome things to do. In fact, I’m outside right now, typing up my very first entry.

• I love reading. I can read just about anything and I’m a huge bookworm. From random signs along a road to a biography about world leaders-I read it all.
• I love learning new things. For me, life is always about discovery. It can be a new skill or even a completely useless but interesting fact (the average raindrop falls at a speed of 7 miles per hour!)

I have absolutely no blogging experience whatever. I don’t have any nice cameras nor do I know how to take a perfect picture.

Haha this is a prime example

I am also not an encyclopedia of food knowledge. But I do know that I love trying new foods and recipes and I want to share that with others.

So if you read this and I haven’t scared you away yet, you should totally subscribe and another entry will be coming your way soon! And if you have any suggestions for me to improve my blog, feel free to comment and let me know!