This year, May Showers brings June Flowers..
It has been one heck of a week. We’ve had rain on and off this week, and more to come next week, and I feel like it was also raining the week prior too. I’ve been really enjoying the warm weather though, Ashka and I have been going out for walks almost every weekday I get the chance (if weather permits). But this week, we had a storm sweep through the Tri-state area, bringing tornadoes up north, 3″ golf ball sized hail, wind, fallen trees, and power outages. My train line home got canceled for hours, I had to take the subway to meet my husband in the Bronx so he could drive me back home, and then we were out of power until the next day, so naturally, we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant with our friends and charged our laptops/phones and enjoyed some spicy enchiladas and guacamole. Below are some pics from our walks in the woods (trying to watch out for ticks this season again though, not trying to get Lyme disease a 2nd time)…
Microsoft Surface Book 2
I also had something exciting happen last week (which is my excuse as to why I didn’t post up a new recipe last week…), I bought a new laptop!! GEEK ALERT WARNING: Gona rant on some techy stuff…
I’m trying out the new Surface Book 2 by Microsoft (I know, my first PC since…..high school *gasp*). I was a hard core Apple fan, until Apple stopped putting their energy into improving their computers and laptops like Microsoft has been doing. You can no longer spec out an Apple computer, even if you want to pay them the goods ($$) instead of taking it apart to do it yourself, they just don’t offer choices like they use to. And I want to use my machines for 3d modeling/rendering, as well as my usual intense Photoshop / Premier Pro use. So I decided to try a touch screen model (so I could draw on it) with a dedicated GPU (NVIDIA 1060 GPU, but 1080 would have been nice if they could offer that in the future), although the RAM (16GB was their max..and its soldered on so you can’t change it) could have been more (I would have liked 32GB as an option). But it’s a quad core 8th gen i7 processor, so I’m excited about that. Battery life is pretty good, and customization based on how much performance you want the computer to run at or conserve. It is super lightweight, like 4lbs, a little strange how it doesn’t fully close at the bend, but the best part of it is that the screen is detachable and can be used as a tablet! Amazing! Only thing like it on the market right now. Although I do wish it could bend backwards more when in laptop mode. The screen is nice, bright enough and the colors look rich/not dull, plus it’s nearly a 4k monitor in terms of resolution. But I will say the touch screen function is really challenging to me to use when on my commute with my bumps, and just in general with the programs I use (menus are small and it requires a lot of precision, which I do not feel is there quite yet). I’m also getting inappropriate feedback from my hands touching the screen when I try to use the pen, so I’m ordering a cheap artist glove to see if that prevents interruption. All in all, I might be keeping it, but we’ll see if I want to opt out of a touch screen feature and go for a more powerful MSI GS65 gaming laptop to do my work on…(haha sorry for the like computer review on my vegan blog LOL! Ok. Back to business!).
Oh! But guess what else! Hehe! My aunt bought me a new heavy duty frying pan that ended up scratching just upon washing!! So I spend like an HOUR at Bed Bath and Beyond last night, returning it for another cookware product, and fell in love with Cuisinart’s Chef Pro 5 QT Casserole Stainless Steel with Glass Top. I’m super excited to start cooking with it! Its the widest pot I now own, and by far the nicest. I’ll have to get that frying pan replacement some other time;P
Lentils for days!
So anyways, yes the recipe! I found this recipe on The Endless Meal and had my husband make it (the master of all things lentils!), and it was delicious! So so good, just looking at it makes my mouth water (can you tell I’m ready for lunch?). Lentils are such an important additive to any diet, some would argue they are one of the world’s most important food! Beans in general are found to be prevalent in diets of the Blue Zones (people who live the longest on the planet) and were emphasized to be one of the most important factors of their longevity. The longest living people eat about 1 cup of beans a day!! Dollar to dollar, lentils provide us with a greater amount of protein than meat does. They provide a good dose of fiber too (so it flushes out the old stuff faster ;D ), and are believed to be good for your heart. In one study, they found a 82% reduction of coronary heart disease among middle aged men when adding legumes to their diet regularly! Lentils also provide a good amount of folate, magnesium, some B vitamins, iron, etc. Just a quick google search brings up enough info to overload the mind on how these tiny legumes pack a powerful punch of nutrition. If this doesn’t convince you to go eat some lentils today, idk what will 🙂
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp - Coconut Oil
- 1 Tbsp - Cumin powder
- 1 Tbsp - Coriander powder
- 6 Cloves - Garlic
- 1 - 28oz Crushed Tomato Cans
- 1 Tbsp - Ginger, chopped
- 1 Tbsp - Turmeric
- 1 tsp - Cayanne Pepper
- Sea Salt and Black or White Pepper to taste
- 1 Cup - Prewashed Dried Brown Lentils
- 3 Cups - Filtered Water
- 1 Can - Coconut Milk (light works too)
- Handful - Cilantro, chopped.
Instructions
- Heat a pot with your coconut oil over medium heat.
- When the oil is hot and melted, stir in your cumin and coriander (freshly ground is best for flavor) and finely diced garlic for about 1-2 minutes.
- Next add your tomatoes, ginger, turmeric and cayenne/black/white pepper.
- Wash your lentils under cool water to help clean off any dirt that may be on them. Then add them into your pot with 3 cups of filtered water and let it simmer for 45 minutes on low heat. Check at the end to test if the lentils are fully cooked.
- Pour in your coconut milk and chopped cilantro, stir and enjoy warmed!
Notes
Keeps good in the fridge for the whole week