July: Kale Medley

My main mission for 2015 is a simple one:  Getting and Staying Happy.  In order to achieve this lofty goal I applied a START-STOP-CONTINUE approach.  And so I’ve decided to START cooking more – using recipes I’ve never tried before and sharing my culinary mis/adventures on the blog once a month.

PS: I realize I've spelt KALE wrong here...forgive me  friends.  I (can't find original pic to alter text now)
PS: I realize I’ve spelt KALE wrong here…forgive me friends. (I can’t find original pic to alter text now.)

July’s recipe: Kale Medley

I’ve only recently began cooking with kale over the last few month, having heard about all of its many health and nutritional benefits.  Kale, I find, is quite bitter on its own as salad, so often I eat it stir-fried, steamed or sautéed.

I have heard it is tasty baked, added to a stew or blended into a smoothie…but I personally haven’t tried any of these myself.

Summer has kept me super busy so far … but I have found myself cooking more often.  If you’re following me on Instagram then you know most of my adventures in the kitchen usually begin without a plan, but rather a desperate need to use up the last of the contents in my fridge before they spoil or before I’m leaving on a trip somewhere.

So here’s a quick and tasty way to sauté your veggies into a Kale Medley.

Ingredients

  • One bunch kale
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed (you can never have too much garlic, but that’s just me)
  • Olive oil
  • 2 tomatoes
  • Lemon juice (half a lemon) or white wine vinegar (optional)
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Chili flakes
  • + Whatever veggies you want

STEPS:

  1. Wash the kale thoroughly, and pat dry.
  2. Slice or chop kale roughly, into bite-sized pieces.
  3. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil and lightly brown crushed garlic. Watch it closely!
  4. Dice your tomatoes and add to pan.  This will create a tasty base coat to the kale leaves.
  5. When garlic is lightly brown, quickly add kale.
STEP 6: Stir and toss until kale is coated with tomatoes, chill flakes and add other veggies and let the kale steam and slightly soften. Check the kale after about 3 minutes. It should be soft, still bright green, and NOT soggy.   OPTIONAL: When it’s softened, and just before serving, add your lemon juice (or vinegar). Taste and season with salt and pepper and serve.
OPTIONAL: I added instant cooked rice directly to the pan and leftover cold cuts to make this an easy one-pan-dinner to yield leftovers for the next day.
TAH-DAH! Kale Medley Rice Bowl!

Now, I’ve recently read a few articles speaking about “The Darker Side of Kale” … as there have been some findings that eating this veggie raw isn’t good for you.  Cooking it seems to help eliminate some of the concerns.  Still, it’s probably best not to go overboard with kale and to simply integrate it into an overall healthful diet full of other fruits and vegetables.

Have you tried cooking with kale?  Will you?  Let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments below.

Want other PPMeow recipes?  You can visit my Instagram page and look for the hashtag #PPMeowCooks for more adventures in my kitchen.

I’ve also created a sub-menu on my homepage under REVIEWS on the homepage for you – my readers –  to find them easily…and hopefully try a few yourself. 🙂

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Hats & Horseshoes

Looking for something different to do on a gorgeous summer day?

Why not spend the day betting on the ponies at the track! 🙂

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The Queen’s Plate is Canada’s oldest thoroughbred horse race, having been founded in 1860. It is also the oldest continuously run race in North America.  The race takes place each summer, in June or July, at Woodbine Racetrack in Etobicoke, ON.

For more history on the Queen’s Plate, click here.

 

Moi…en route to my first Hat’s & Horseshoes Event

Never placed a bet before? Not to worry, they had guests covered!  Everyone got a $2 betting voucher with entrance and the Betting Impact team will be roaming the Hats & Horseshoes Party to teach you the Basics of Betting.

Sadly, I’m not very lucky and didn’t win on any of the horses I selected. Le sigh…

I did get a kick outta some of the horse names – my fave was Conquest Boogaloo.  She’s she pretty?

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One of the most compelling parts of attending this event was the excuse to wear a giant hat!

I decided to do my best “country club” look with my tiered floral maxi (Old Navy), platform black sandals (Coach) and beige sunhat with gold hardware & ribbon detail (Necessities).  

Miss Jacquie, founder of the Toronto Vintage Society, and moi walking the red carpet at the 156th Anniversary of the Queens Plate.  Isn’t her hat divine! ❤

Turns out our penchant for any excuse to wear large hats was a something many of us had in common 🙂  Ran into a few more Toronto Vintage Society gals at the event …dressed in lovely vintage summer frocks and purses, naturally.

It was an extremely hot day.  There was very minimal shady covered spots at the track, and I was thankful to be wearing a sunhat.  It was only while I was watching the gorgeous horses parading around close up that I started to wonder about their treatment. 😦

If you’re curious, click here to read more about the racetrack safety protocols followed by The Woodbine Racetrack.

Jockey’s are so little.
Refined ladies eating hotdogs in the grass ... Classy!
Refined ladies eating hotdogs in the grass … Classy!

The only clip still on my phone ready for uploading to this post:  Bag-pippers marching along doing what they do best.

Once we had enough wandering around the grassy grounds among the food trucks and beverage tents, and had our fill eyeing all the well-dressed men and women and their giant hats …

We headed to our $18 seats for a break. It was Race Time!

Sunnies Activate!

I tried filming at the track. But it seems I’ve since deleted the vid clip of the excitement from my phone.

Not to worry…it’s documented here on my Instagram channel – are you following me friends? Start following me here.

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Wearing my FREE Queen’s Plate Lapel Pin proudly … eating popcorn and cheering for our horses in our $18 dollar seats 🙂

I have to say, the best part of this event was the photo ops …. men in uniforms…**swoon**

What’s better than a man in a uniform? TWO men in uniforms!!

Hope you’ve been enjoying your summer friends.  Stay tuned for more of my summer adventure recaps – complete with what I wore and what I did. xo

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Rock The Crop Top

Did ya read the latest in O, The Oprah Magazine? 😕

Who else is tired of being told what they can and cannot wear?

If you want to wear a crop top — WEAR A CROP TOP. If you like it, wear it.

Life is too short. Live your life and stop waiting on your weight!

Be happy in your clothes and with your body just as you are NOW.    #effyourbeautystandards #rockthecroptop #freethebelly #bodypositive

For outfit details, see below:

  1. Modern Monochrome
  2. Yellow Crop & Midi Set
  3. Crochet Top & Soft Pant
  4. Backless Nautical Striped Dress
RockTheCropTop
Did ya read the latest in O, The Oprah Magazine? 😕 Who else is tired of being told what they can and cannot wear? If you want to wear a crop top — WEAR A CROP TOP. If you like it, wear it. Life is too short. Live your life and stop waiting on your weight! Be happy in your clothes and with your body just as you are NOW. ❤ ❤❤❤❤❤ #effyourbeautystandards #rockthecroptop #freethebelly #bodypositive

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Neon & Stripes

Hello friends!!!  Sorry it’s been such a long while since I’ve done a proper blogpost.

Summer days lead to summer nights…and I’ve been making the most of both so far this July.

Hope you are doing the same. 🙂

Guess what I’ve managed to do?  I finally introduced some NEON into my summer wardrobe!

It’s everywhere.  You’ve seen it.  I just didn’t know how to pull it off myself.  But then I found this body con dress from Rainbow Shops on my last cross-boarder shopping trip earlier this Spring for a super steal of a price.  And it’s been hanging in my closet with tags on ever since.

I finally had the nerve to wear it while I was in Ottawa over Canada Day Long Weekend.  (Stay tuned to the blog for a recap of my trip…coming soon!)
IMG_8023The centre colour block of neon with the bold black and white strips down the sides of this body hugging midi length frock, make this a very loud and vibrant look.  Especially when worn at night …  So I made sure to keep accessories, shoes and purse solid black and simple, to avoid adding any more noise to this outfit.

During the hot summer months, neon is quickly becoming something I want to wear more of.  I’ve been looking for the perfect chartreuse pieces to introduce into my wardrobe next. Preferably in a pump 😉

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How I Got The Look:  Neon & Stripes dress from Rainbow Shops; Jelly shoes from my AsianAdventure 

 

Have you jumped on the neon bandwagon this summer?  If you’re nervous about it, start small. Go for a piece of jewelry with neon stones, neon nails, or a neon belt.

Are you following me on INSTAGRAM? If so, you’ve likely seen a few more pics and video clips as I took them during my trip.  Search for the hashtag: PPMeowTravels to see more of my adventures and outfits there.

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