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Sweet, Savory, and #StrangeButGood!

Posted on September 13, 2013 by kissmybroccoli

LOVES!!!

Omg, happy Friday! Wow, so I’ve seriously been cursing the heavens trying to get this post up since last night! I spent most of the day yesterday on the phone with the cable company in an attempt to get a minor internet connection issue resolved…much to my dismay, after THREE HOURS, I was told someone would have to come out today and take a look. Luckily, in my four-hour window (gah, how I hate that), he came sooner rather than later! And?

Well, three CHEERS for the internet fixy man and one WTF-I-HATE-YOU for the city who decided it would be a good idea to sever my cable while digging around the water lines the other day!

Seriously?!

Ok, so now that THAT’S settled (and I’ve had my brief little b!tch moment), let’s FINALLY get on to the strange BUT good action!

It seems I’ve been having a quite the summer romance with basil. I mean, first there was Berry Bruschetta, then there was the herb-spiked grilled cheese, and of course this week’s Peach, Raspberry & Basil shenanigans. It seemed only natural for my little herb-crush to turn a little more ~~serious~~ SALACIOUS! 😉

What started out as a moment of sweet and savory FOREPLAY…

Quickly transformed into an all out MOUTHGASM!

I’ll have you all know I’m resisting the urge to comment more on the fact that those happen to be CHERRY tomatoes! 😉

Mouthgasm: (noun) The physical and emotional sensation experienced during peak flavor sensation, usually resulting from stimulation by eating something wonderful, and usually accompanied by a moan of pleasure.

Thank you Urban Dictionary for that little bit of enlightenment…oh and for helping me understand what the heck twerking finally is! 😀

Nectarine, Blueberry, Tomato & Basil Salad

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

Keywords: raw salad entrée vegetarian vegan nut-free gluten-free blueberries tomatoes basil #strangebutgood summer

Ingredients (Serves 1)

2 large handfuls of chopped fresh kale
1/3 block extra firm tofu, cubed
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/3 cup sliced cucumbers
1/4 cup sliced red onion
1/2 nectarine (or peach), sliced
1/4 cup blueberries
1/2 avocado, sliced
2 Tablespoons roughly chopped basil
1 Tablespoon hemp seeds

Instructions

1. Combine/layer all ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Toss with your favorite balsamic dressing.
3. Enjoy!

I drizzled this baby with my favorite balsamic dressing using blueberry jam, then added another level of sensation with my latest obsessions, nutty, crunchy hemp seeds!

And well?

Let’s just say after I finished taking about 37562 pictures of it (give or take a few), that bowl and I did a little more than spoon. 😉

Now do me a favor and go make this salad…twerking may be optional (because that shit is dangerous!), but the moaning and fanning yourself, as you will see, is NOT! 😉

What is your favorite fresh herb?

What’s the last thing you tasted that was utterly mouthgasmic?

Posted in Entree, Raw, Strange But Good, Vegan, Vegetarian | Tagged avocado, basil, blueberries, hemp seeds, nectarines, salad, tofu, tomatoes | 27 Comments

The Secret’s OUT!

Posted on September 12, 2013 by kissmybroccoli

I’ve always been pretty good at keeping secrets.

And I don’t mean the one (or two) that just happen to be proof of my early onset Alzheimer’s kicking in! No, I mean the real JUICY ones…yep, I’m practically a vault! Like I would NEVER tell my friend Tiffany’s husband that she thinks his new mustache makes him look like a 70’s porn star…8O

I mean, err…uhh…some secrets were just meant to be told, like…

The secret to the PERFECT sandwich:

Seedy (preservative-free, only has 8 squeaky clean ingredients) bread from Publix bakery…and sprouts…ALWAYS sprouts!

The secret to getting ALL the attention on you in the middle of a crowded food aisle in TJ Maxx:

Mother #@&#$%# TRUFFLE!!!!

The secret to using up leftovers slash riding the fridge of half its contents:

A salad the size of a small child…oh and cover that baby in truffle glaze while you’re at it! 😉

The secret to preventing DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness):

Stretching followed by at least 15 SUPER sweaty minutes in the sauna and LOTS of water…obnoxious selfie optional.

The secret to taking obnoxious selfies at the gym WITHOUT getting caught with that awkward “I wasn’t just taking a picture of myself” look on your face:

Handicap bathroom stall, baby!

The secret to calorie-free indulgence:

Philosophy’s mouth-watering lip glosses…bonus points if you find them on sale at TJ Maxx (LOOK, I bought something other than food and workout clothes! ;))

The secret to the perfect light bounce for food photography (as so many of you requested in the comments of Monday’s post):

One 3-ringed binder wrapped in aluminum foil (dull side out)!

The secret to {foodie} happiness:

Surely to GOD has to be within these candy-coated balls of goodness! Has anyone tried them?! I may not be ready for fall yet, but I have GOT to have these!

What secret are you willing to share today?

Have you jumped on the pumpkin ALL THE THINGS train yet? 😉

Posted in Thursday Things | Tagged dips, pumpkin, salad, sandwich, shopping, TJ Maxx, truffle butter | 47 Comments

Confessions of a Nut Butter Hoarder

Posted on September 11, 2013 by kissmybroccoli

Hello, my name is Heather and I am a nut butter hoarder.

Though I like to think of it more like “collecting.” 😉

TEN jars lie within the dark and secret-y shelves of my pantry….nine of which are currently open…two of which I guess aren’t “technically” nut butter…one of which I’ve realized I don’t really like…and another one of which expired a year ago.

#noshame

I can’t help it. Whenever I see a new and intriguing nut butter, I just HAVE to have it…hence the “cinnayum” peanut butter at the top right (found that baby at TJ Maxx!), but a few weeks ago, I decided that it was HIGH time I started making my way through some of my “collection”…

So one morning I whipped up a bowl of Greek yogurt, figs, and coconut peanut butter.

It was so good, the next day, I made the same bowl with peaches and blueberries!

Then, I didn’t want the other jars feeling like the coconut peanut butter was getting special treatment so I moved on to some vanilla espresso almond butter and had it with some cherries.

But then I ended up coming BACK to the coconut peanut butter…this time with figs AND raspberries!

But then I was like, no Heather, the other nut butters need a chance…so I pulled out a super secret packet of chocolate coconut peanut butter and drizzled it over a bowl with figs and peaches AND some healthy chocolate sauce.

Then I started getting tired of Greek yogurt so I made my way to some carby goodness with a bowl of oats, raspberries, blueberries and more of the ~~ninja~~ chocolate coconut peanut butter.

But then the coconut butter called to me so in a ~~bowl~~ glass it went with some oats, figs, and cacao nibs.

Note to self: cold oats + warm coconut butter = DEEEEEE-VINE!

Then I felt like I should spread (ahh, see what I did there? ;)) the nut butter love a little more so I pulled a P28 bagel from the depths of my freezer and slopped on some coconut peanut butter (so, any question as to which one is my favorite?) and figs.

Regular bread got in on the action too with some regular peanut butter, blueberries, and blueberry jam.

Then I was totally feeling finger food-y!

Figger food-y?

Look, it’s a ~~faux~~ fig-hawk! 😉

Had to happen.

Note to self: Make this your last meal…with a spoon the size of a friggin’ serving platter!

What can I say, I’m in LUV!

And of course, all of this was just a way to shove my face full of MORE summer sweetness! 😉

Now head on over to Peas & Crayons, give a shout out to our hostess and NEW MOMMY, and then see if anyone else linking up is as “nutty” as me! 😉

Ok. Dude. That was corny.

Are there any specific foods you tend to ~~hoard~~ collect?
Of course, you guys KNOW how I am with my mustard but I’m also pretty sure I’m the only single gal with a dedicated “cheese drawer” in her fridge…which may or may not hold thirteen different kinds right now. 😯