5-1/2 Weeks Left, & Good Food

Basically I love anything having to do with tomatoes and avocados.
I have discovered roasted tomatoes are the BOMB!
And just perfectly ripe avocados are the BOMB!
I have also discovered dark red, juicy raw tomatoes are the BOMB!
Avocados and eggs are the BOMB!
Add a freshly grown tomato and you have DOUBLE BOMB!
Frankly, I'm feeling explosively happy right now! Yes, tomatoes and avocados have something to do with my current state of being.

One of my favourite creations is my Almost-Famous Tuna Salad. If you've been around me for awhile I've probably made this Tuna Salad for you. That's what I mean by "almost famous", my family and friends probably know about it.
I never make it the same way twice. But basically, there are a few things I always like to put in it.

Tuna, for starters,
Fresh Apples, chopped
Dried Cranberries, be generous
Fresh Cilantro, cannot have too much cilantro!
Green Onions, don't go too far overboard, but don't be shy
Mustard, as much or as little as you like
Mayo, only enough to bind everything together, too much and you lose everything else
Salt and pepper to taste.

I usually like to add grated carrots, finely chopped celery, fresh dill, chopped up, a little fresh, chopped rosemary (though I am trying to figure out a way to get the oils out of the rosemary without the strange sensation that I'm eating an evergreen tree...rosemary oil? Muddle the rosemary? I don't know...still experimenting), fresh thyme! If you have lemon thyme, even better! Boiled eggs from pastured hens make a fantastic addition, and are especially great for extra protein if you find your Tuna is getting lost amongst all your other fantastic veggies and herbs and stuff. If you're like me you like things to have a very awesome, full mix of flavours; so I add horseradish if I have it available. Hot horseradish. It gets hidden very nicely in the salad so you don't really have to worry about it overpowering anything.

Now I used to put this on a sandwich and feed it to my dad and brothers. As far as I know, they all liked it, but you know how men can be, basically non-commital if they like something.
More recently I discovered that putting it on a bed of salad greens makes it epic! Also if you decide to take it to work for lunch, your bread doesn't get soggy. (I have had this problem, it is not wonderful).
Now, if you are going to put it on a bed of salad greens, why not make an all-out salad out of it? Cut up some fresh tomatoes and it's the BOMB! Add an avocado and *bang!* DOUBLE BOMB!!
Other fun things I'll add if I'm in the mood and have them on hand are cooked white rice mixed with olive oil and herbs, chick peas, grapes, more cilantro (I'm a fan), cucumbers, grated cheese of choice (I especially like Sharp Cheddar, Smoked Cheddar, Smoked Gouda, cubed, or a little freshly grated Parmesan, easy to go overboard on Parm though), basically if you like it, add it!
Today the only fruits or veggies I had to add to my tuna salad were apples. This made me sad. But I was extra generous with the mustard and substituted dried dill for fresh. Alas, also no cilantro or dried cranberries. I did, however, have a perfectly ripe avocado and a fresh red tomato! So I tore up some fresh Romaine lettuce, dumped my Tuna Salad on top of it and topped that with my Tomato and Avocado.
Now I usually like to add some kind of dressing, but creamy dressings don't work. Usually I'll just end up squeezing a fresh lemon over it all and it turns out pretty good. Today I drizzled Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil and fresh lemon juice on the top, sprinkled a little dried dill on top of that with some grated Parm, and sat down to enjoy my BOMB-licious salad.

In the midst of making my BOMB-licious salad, I decided to look up what kind of squash it was that I had in my fridge, and how to cook it.
Found a fantastic recipe on my favourite Real Food blog and discovered that I have pattypan squashes. Unfortunately I didn't have fresh basil, or dried for that matter, so I put some kale in it and roasted it in my tiny new toaster oven with the last half of a zucchini squash I had in the fridge too.
Toaster oven worked like a little miracle, and my kitchen did not start melting! Even turning on a burner and cooking something on the stovetop makes my kitchen hotter than that tiny toaster oven did!
Ha ha! So now I think I need a name for my tiny toaster oven!

And so on to other subjects:
Being almost 35 weeks along means I'm not sleeping as well as I would like. It is highly difficult to get comfortable. And then, whether I drink before bed or not, I still have to get up twice to 3 times in the night to go to the bathroom. I guess that is something I will just have to get used to. Babies wake up in the night a lot I've heard.
However, even being this much pregnant I find myself able to keep up with the worst of my household chores, the kitchen! I cook at least every other day, and I clean something in my kitchen at least once a day. Even if it is just what I used to make lunch that day.
I feel good about that. Now I really need to take on the enormous task of cleaning and organizing my bedroom to prepare for the advent of my tiny little man! That, however, is a bit more daunting. **sigh**
I need my mommy!

And I want to make a peach pie, and sticky buns.
But I need a rolling pin.
**sigh**

Well TTFN my friends and blog readers!

Hopefully more awesome will come out of my brain in the next week. Tomorrow I am going shopping! Must get coconut oil. And eggs. And milk. And butter.