I've been MIA for a reason :-)

I've had this dream of having my owning my own bakery for sometime now; 2 years, 3 months and 29 days to be exact. J/k what kind of freak would keep track of something like that? Me haha... I've baked cookies, muffins, packaged teas, and had friends and family members test and re-test samples. My Mom, Dad, sister and brother, Monet, Nobuko, Danielle, Jeanine, LA, Zena, Synthia, Vince, Safraz, Vern, Guy, Tamarah, Chey, Camille, Nicole, Chrisco, Sheila, Syeeta, Ms. Brenda, my Aunts, the ladies of the LSW OT house, Marques, my neighbor Denise from across the hall and numerous others have tried my goods and given me valuable feedback about how to make my product great. So this post is really a thank you to you guys. I shipped the first package of my newly formulated and packaged vegan chocolate chip cookies out today! Here's what we got....













Check back tomorrow, and I'll tell you why the ingredients I use are the awesomest lol.

My date with... his mom.

I'm not a woman that has to go to the most expensive restaurants to have a good time. Don't get me wrong, I do like to be wined and dined, but it's not necessary to do that sorta thing ALL OF THE TIME. There are so many other ways to have fun and get to know another person. Enter fun dating experience #2. Surprisingly it had little to do with the man and everything to do with his mom.

Moms love me... it's a fact. I'm a good woman, and I believe that they're simply happy to see their son with a positive addition to their lives. So, I'm not tooting my own horn; it's simple logic. This on the other hand, does not keep me from feeling nervous the first time I meet Mom-dukes lol. It's especially nerve wracking when I don't even know the son that well. Enter the garden scenario. After eating lunch on his patio, Mr. So and So had to take an important phone call. This was fine with me because it gave me a chance to space out and stare off into the garden. There were Collards, Butternut squash, tomatoes and a variety of other herbs and veggies. Check it out:





While I was sitting on the steps his Mom came down the stairs with her gardening sheers. Now while this could have the potential to turn into a horror story, it was actually a great experience. I politely got out her way and we struck up an easy conversation. As we chatted, I followed her through the garden as she plucked the ripe produce off of the vines. I asked questions and she answered. She picked and I carried. It was nice. By the end of our small excursion I was thinking "If this man is anything like his mom, we might have something here." Lol! This is yet to be seen but, if his mom were to call me up haha... I'd be there. On our way out the door Mr. So and So's mom surprised me with a bag of veggies from her garden. Sweet :-)



1 butternut squash
1 large bushel of Collard Greens
1 cucumber
4 tomatoes
1 bunch of fresh mint leaves
1 Bunch of lemon mint

So Far I've made the Collard greens, Roasted squash soup, roasted pumpkin seeds from the squash and I'm thinking that I'll make a cup of mint tea before I go to bed. I'll post about all of the goodies later. Have a nice weekend :-).

The way to a woman's heart....

As a few of you know, my knee is healing and after a summer on crutches, I've finally upgraded to a cane (woo hoo). Y'all know what that means: I'm out and about and ready to start dating again. Now, the only reason I'm posting about this is because 1) I'm really excited about dating again and 2) I've eaten a lot of really good food along the way. The blog is called "Watch She Eat " after all, and she's been eating a lot lol.....


Over the past week I've gone to this cute French restaurant in Manhattan, eaten Felafel in Union Square and hung out at the farmers market, eaten plenty of Roti throughout Brooklyn and Queens (I seriously cannot get enough of that stuff...mmmmmm) and have gone gardening. It's been a lot of fun exploring NYC and meeting new people through the city's abundance of food options. My two favorite experiences thus far had to be going to this little Roti spot in Queens and gardening. At the Roti spot, there was reggae music playing in the background, bright tropical colors on the walls, the heavy scent of curries and spices in the air and the playful lit of the Trini accent interacting with it all. You couldn't tell me that I was still in Queens, for my mind and body had been transported to the islands. This is what I got:




Fried sweet plantain, tomatoes and greens, and the buss-up shot.



Close up-before I demolished it. Like a lady of course :-P



The dough is called a Buss-up-Shut or Buss-Up-Shot, and you tear it and use it to scoop up the fillings which in my case, were Chorai/Callaloo (greens) and something like stewed tomatoes. Chorai is similar to spinach in that it's a leafy green, but it has a richer, earthier flavor to me. It was delicious - and spicy! When I mentioned the heat, delivered by none other than the notorious scotch bonnet, I got a laugh and a "Yankee" casually thrown in my direction... haha.


Info on how to make a buss-up-shot: here and here.

Check back tomorrow to read about my gardening experience :-).

Saturday's Farmer's Market outting...

Admittedly this week I went a little bit over board with the produce this week, but in my defense, I couldn't go to the Farmer's Market last week because Hurr'cane Irene. This is what I scored...

7 carrots
7 potatoes
4 Apples
3 plums
2 jalapenos
1 tomato
1 head of garlic
1 bunch of collard greens
1 bunch of leafy green lettuce
1 large handful of green beans


COST: $ 14

To quote my home girl Monet: "Now you can't beat that with a stick." :-)

If you haven't been taking advantage of your local Farmer's Market, find one in your neighborhood here.

Honey Glazed Salmon

I had been craving Salmon all week by the time yesterday's dinner was made. By Thursday night... it was doing dooooown! Now I could have quelled my cravings by simply going to a restaurant and handing over 15- 20 dollars for a mediocre meal that would have been enough food for one serving, or I could take that same $15/$20 and purchase a decent piece of fish and make enough food for 2 people that would make enough for dinner with left-overs for the next day. I love left overs :-)

Here is how I did it.....

1.5 pounds of Salmon - $ 15
Honey- I had.
Chilli powder - Had it.

Fresh spinach - I had on stock.
1/2 Shallot- I had.
1/4 Onion- I had.

Rice- I had.
Olive Oil- Had that too
Salt and pepper- Had it.
Garlic - You guessed it...


BEFORE:



AFTER:




Recipe: ( adapted from a cooks.com recipe )

1 lb. fresh salmon fillets
2 tbsp. olive oil
1/4 c. honey
1/4 onion
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp. chili powder
Salt and pepper

Steps:

1. Rinse and pat dry the salmon
2. Cut the pieces into desired serving size. ( suggest no bigger than the palm of your hand)
3. If the skin is still on one the salmon - cut that off
4. Sprinkle both sides with with salt and pepper
5. Cover and put in the fridge for a 15- 30 min (If you are in a rush... no big deal. A few minutes will do)
6. While the Salmon is chillin' (literally haha) start chopping your veggies
7. Cut your onion into half moon slices
8. Crush and the rough chop your garlic
9. Mix honey, garlic and chilli powder into a small bowl
10. When ready, pull your salmon out of the fridge and place it on the counter.
11. Heat your olive oil into a large pan (medium heat)
12. Once hot... Place salmon in along with your onions allow each side to cook until there is only a little bit of pink left in the center of the salmon
13. Pour honey mixture over the salmon (it will bubble up) and continuously pour over the salmon until nicely coated and fish is finished cooking
14. Serve hot on a bed of rice and fresh spinach sauteed in shallots and garlic . - or however you should desire it.


Total time for the entire meal ( rice and spinach included): Approx 30 min!