Just because the holidays are over doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy some tasty food with pumpkin as a key ingredient. I have shared several recipes with you here, here, here, here, here and here, which might indicate an appreciation of my fav squash.  I was reminded of the love affair Americans have with the orange gourd when I roamed the aisles of Costco on our last Foodie Fieldtrip Friday. Just to mention a few, I saw pumpkin granola, pumpkin bread and pumpkin soup.

And since it is pretty darn cold here (0 celcius/32 F) the later sounds pretty darn good!  My daughter is known to whip up a batch of her famous turkey pumpkin chili, which is even better than soup.  Hearty, filling and since it is made with ground turkey, it’s light, low in fat and super high in protein (perfect for all of you with New Year, New You resolutions).  But since she is up to her ears at the moment with the babies and getting a masters degree, and since I was in town visiting, I decided put this together real quick like!

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 pound ground white or dark meat turkey
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with their liquid
• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée or fresh pumpkin roasted and pureed
• 1 cup water or stock
• 1 tablespoon chili powder (I only put in 1 tsp to make it kid friendly)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Preparation

Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, jalapeño and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add turkey and cook until browned. Add tomatoes, pumpkin, water, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and add beans. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes more. Ladle chili into bowls and serve.

This is a great meal to prepare in advance and even tastes better the next day as the flavors have time to marinate. And though it is super easy to make, if you are having guests they’re likely to think you spent hours slaving away over a hot stove!  You can use canned pumpkin, which is usually available in the supermarket, or you can roast off a fresh pumpkin (or any another type of squash) and puree it in a food processor.  In fact, my daughter had some pumpkin puree she had made and then froze. A quick defrost and we were ready to rock and roll.

It was fortuitous that I made the Turkey Pumpkin Chili early in the day. My granddaughter Harper has gymnastics on Mondays after school. By the time we got home from that we were both starved and ready to eat.  I worked up an appetite just watching her navigate the balance beam and uneven bars!  So this chili was a blessing!  I guess we weren’t the only ones in the family having some chili. My daughter in law also made some Turkey Chili (sans pumpkin)  and posted it to her blog!  All in the Chili Fam for winter warmer meals!

Warm and Toasty Love,

YDP

Besides Wednesdays and our Woman Crushes, Friday is my next favorite day because of the F-cubed (Foodie Fieldtrip Friday). I love to go on gourmet archeological digs looking for anything and everything that has to do with food!  Because it’s the first Friday since I arrived in America, I thought what would be the most iconic foodie fieldtrip to take? And of course a visit to Costco Wholesale Market seemed like the best thing to do. A super sized warehouse filled with food and more! Just a few short weeks ago, we were in Copenhagen eating at the two Michelin Stars restaurant Geranium. But the cool thing about these little culinary expeditions is to see all sides of the food world. And of course I brought along my snapchat friends (username: blissbakery). But the best accompaniments for this journey were my girls! Heather, Harper and Hope joined along for our big adventure.

Costco opened its first warehouse in Seattle, Washington in 1983, but the birth of warehouse shopping began in 1976 in San Diego, California.  Price Club, as it was known, eventually merged with Costco in 1993, and this new company has grown to 689 warehouses around the world!  Although primarily in the United States and Canada, you can now find a Costco in places such as Spain and Japan!  The business model is pretty simple, low prices on high volume of products, usually bulk packed, which suit a large family or business.  And with a mandatory yearly membership fee, there is built in customer loyalty.

Though this was a foodie fieldtrip, I couldn’t help but share a bit about the other aspects of Costco. They sell everything from clothes, books, electronics, furniture, exercise equipment and even tires.  Having a party?  No problem, they’ve got the food, drink, ice and a place for your guests to sit to go with it all!  Their ethos is simple, ” Costco is known for offering low-price, limited-selection ‘retail treasure hunts’, where ‘one’s shopping cart could contain a $50,000 diamond ring resting on top of a 64-ounce vat of mayonnaise.'”  That is a funny visual!  So long as the ring doesn’t fall into the vat of mayo!  And of course my fav juxtaposition was the exercise equipment for sale next to the ginormous food area!  But with all the tasty samples of food offered, we might need to burn off a few calories!

The vastness of the food area cannot be emphasized. But what is brilliant is that to prevent overwhelm (as in, so many choices where does one start) they offer tasters of everything! Literally you could go in at noontime and leave not needing to eat your own packed brown bag lunch!  But there is a method behind the madness. This article in the Atlantic spells out the psychology behind Costco’s food offerings.  Having managed a gourmet fresh food store in Dublin for a number of years, I was all about tasters. While mine were fancier than Costco’s, I remember the “tasting culture” as we called it in work.  It makes a difference to sales to offer product demonstration (free samples) as there can be as much as a 2000% boost in sales!  YUM!  Perfect example, on our little Foodie Fieldtrip Friday, I walked out buying a loaf of bread I didn’t need, but couldn’t live without! S’Mores Bread!!!!!

They carry ethnic foods, special dietary foods (such as gluten free), and my fav, they carry some key Irish brands like Guinness and Kerrygold!  As you know from my story on here before, I love my Kerrygold butter!  And my Hubby is addicted to all kinds of bars as meal replacement. At Costco, you can get a year supply in one trip!

With all the goodies you end up getting, you kinda need a super sized shopping cart! Or you can opt for a flatbed dolly/trolly!  Which makes getting in line at the cash registers (tills) a bit tricky, but with all those tasters no one complains. Their blood sugar levels are all good and most folks just chill out! And if you buy ginormous bags of coffee beans, they offer grinders just past the check out counters. Good thinking Costco!

While this kind of shopping isn’t for everyone, it is fascinating to see what it is all about. For families, it can be a real savings to stock up on these large bulk items. Because Costco doesn’t spend loads on fancy displays (everything comes in on wooden pallets and that is how they are displayed) that gets passed on to the customers in lower prices. As well, Costco is meant to be one of the best places to work compared to other giant discount chains (I’m not naming names) as 85% of their workers do have health insurance and earn a much better wage. But even a household of only two people such as my aunt and uncle can benefit from Costco by purchasing the gas/petrol for their cars, buying a new computer or even getting a quick bite to eat at their little cafe. If you like hot dogs like they do, who could pass up a giant one (with a drink) for only $1.50?

While the American stereotype of Supersize isn’t always the most glamorous or flattering, in the case of Costco, I think it is awesome! It was really fun to explore from a different vantage point having lived abroad now for the past eight years. And from the looks of the comments I received from my snapchat followers, they enjoyed it too!

With Supersized Love!

YDP

During Salad Scentral, which finished a little over a week ago, I received a request for a spiralized salad recipe with a soy dressing.  It is great that people are so motivated to eat healthy with the New Year.  And I aim to please, therefore I had to post the recipe today as I am on the move again with planes, trains and automobiles. So as I was getting all the bits and pieces together for a snapchat cooking tutorial (username: blissbakery) I happened on a news item about Blue Monday. Apparently today, January 18^th, is coined the saddest day of the year!  So what better way to bust out of the blue than with a colorful, healthy salad.  And of course a bit of bad singing and dancing by yours truly! You know it! Yet in spite of the sore ears of my followers, there is always a good recipe for the pain!  This one is light, easy, meatless, and it actually keeps well.  That is important as most salads start to wilt once you put the dressing on them . Believe it or not this one tastes better when you give it a chance to marinate a bit.  Hence, I popped some in a tupperware and headed out the door.

I am traveling to America today to see my family.  I’m so excited!  I also want to arrive feeling well. That can be hard to do when going such a long distance.  But the quote, “Fail to prepare, then prepare to fail” is keeping me on task.  I may not have control over flight delays or elevators not working at the London Tube stations (though I was lucky to get a couple nice people to help me lift my heavy bag up the stairs), but I can control what I put in my mouth. And this salad, along with an organic apple and some healthy oaty flapjacks I baked last night, will get me through!

Ingredients
1 seedless English cucumber, Blade D, noodles trimmed if too long
1 large carrot, or 2 medium carrots, peeled, Blade D,
1 medium zucchini, Blade D, noodles trimmed if too long
Large handful of mixes leaves (spinach, watercress and rocket/arugula)
½ cup toasted flaked almonds
For the dressing:
¼ cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons creamy almond butter
2 tablespoons  soy sauce (you can also use tamari sauce which is gluten free)
1 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon honey
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 garlic clove, pressed and minced
1 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 teaspoon sriracha sauce (or chili garlic sauce or red pepper flakes)

Instructions
Pat dry the cucumber noodles to rid of excess moisture. Place into a large mixing bowl along with the carrot and zucchini noodles. Add in the mixed leaves and almonds.
If you have a jar (I used the almond butter jar which was nearly empty, just the 2 Tbsp left which I needed) then put all the ingredients in the jar and shake well. Or using a bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing until creamy. Taste and adjust if necessary. If using low sodium soy sauce you may need to add a bit of salt.
Pour the dressing over the noodle salad and toss to combine thoroughly. Serve immediately or chill for future use, 1-2 days in the refrigerator for optimal freshness. (adapted from Inspiralized)

So while everyone on the plane is eating mystery meat, I’ll be breaking out my lovely Spiralized Veg Noodle Salad with Asian Dressing. No offense to my son, who as I have shared here before, likes airplane food.  Then for my afters treat I’ll be having my tasty flapjacks.  Um, I might have already devoured the apple just now while writing this!

I hope everyone has a great day in spite of what the media tells us! I mean this term Blue Monday has only been around since 2005.  It isn’t scientific, and likely makes people feel more sad because they think they are supposed to be.  I say, have a dance party in the privacy of your own home.  Sing a little (hey if I can do it anyone can, I have the world’s worst voice) and smile ALOT. Smiling actually stimulates muscles in your face and that triggers your brain to brighten up you mood.  Lastly, have some colorful food. Whether this salad or something else that brings a rainbow to your tummy!  And I am gonna keep spreading some LOVE!  I carry this quote with me everywhere.  I like to think that if WE spread just a little bit of LOVE right where we are, then that multiplied will make the world a better place!

Rainbow (not Blue) Monday Love!

YDP

PS.  A special thanks to my Hubby for the Spiralizer gift for Christmas, I love it!  But for anyone that doesn’t have one, don’t fear. You can still make this by using your best chopping knife and cutting the veg into julienne (thin strips) or using a flat/square style potato peeler like I used when I made the Courgette and Carrot Ribbon Salad.