Happy Pumpkin Wednesday!

Hello All and Happy Pumpkin Wednesday!  You have made it halfway through another week and only Thursday and Friday stands between you and the weekend.

Today was another beautiful summer day in Cleveland.  The weather was warm without being too terribly humid, and the day ended with a beautiful sunset... *sigh*

Any day there is beautiful weather I am always happy to see people out and about, walking, jogging, sauntering, and of course bike riding.  I am all for enjoying physical activity and the great outdoors, but Pumpkin told me that while she sat in the window sill on the front porch she saw bikers who were not following the rules of the road.  Not being one to argue with the wise Pumpkin, I let her share the rules and tips to follow in order to stay safe on your bicycle.

I will now menacingly sit above you and lecture you. 

1. Buy and wear a helmet!  Most of you who are reading this blog are old enough now that coolness is less important than being able bodied enough to go to work in order to pay back your school loans/mortgage/credit card debt.

Helmet goes on your head, not butt...

Make sure you buy a helmet that fits snuggly and and that it does not move from side to side.  The helmet should sit level on your head and low on your forehead, about one or two finger-widths above your eyebrow.

If this were a helmet and not a stupid hat Lindsay made me wear, it isn't quite the perfect fit...

2.  Bikes are meant to be ridden on trails and on roads not on sidewalks.  Yes friends, sidewalks are for walking, and bikes should be ridden on the road (but preferably avoiding busy roads).  If you are a bike rider and happen to be on a sidewalk, get a bell or horn to let walkers and other pedestrians know you are coming through.

Lindsay makes me wear a bell so I can't sneak up on her...

3.  Now that you know that bikes should go on the road, you should also know that bikes on the road are to act and be treated like cars.  When you are riding your bicycle on the road you should travel in the same direction as traffic and be aware of intersections.  This tip seems obvious, but since you can't travel as fast as a car, you are best off to plan your routes so you ride on roads that are not very busy where there is a large shoulder.


4.  Wear light colored gear so cars can see you!  Avoid riding at dusk, and wear clothing that makes it easy for motorists to see you.

I turn on my laser eyes at dusk...

5. Lastly, Pumpkin reminds you to have fun!


What are your favorite summer outdoor activities?

Looking forward to a great Thursday!

Getting out of a Recipe Rut

Hello friends!  I hope you all had a lovely and relaxing Fourth of July weekend and got to spend some time with friends and family.

After a weekend of eating out and drinking, I felt like tonight I needed to do some home cooking.  However, I have been in a sort of a recipe rut where I basically have been making nothing but tacos. It's not my lack of creativity that is entirely to blame though.  Cooking in the summer is difficult because even if you have air conditioning you're usually not in the mood to turn on the oven/stove.  Many of my fall/winter recipes are shelved like my sweaters while I enjoy the few months of warm weather in Cleveland.

So I spent a bit of time with my cookbooks and the internet and found a few things that I will be making as the summer goes on.  Below is my first recipe to bring it out mealtime out of the rut:

Thai Chicken Salad with Rice Noodles from epicurious.com

So delicious.

Ingredients:

• 4.5 ounces rice stick noddles (maifun)

For the Dressing:

• 4 garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
• 2 teaspoons chopped peeled fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons hot chili paste (one brand is sambal oelek)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

For the Salad:

• 3 roasted chicken breast halves, boned, skinned, shredded
• 3 cups shredded Napa cabbage
• 1 cup grated kiri
• 1 cup red bell pepper strips
• 1/2 cut thinly sliced onion
• 2 medium cucumbers thinly sliced
• coarsely chopped roasted salted peanuts for garnish

Cook the rice noodles in boiling water for about 3 minutes.  When finished, drain the noodles, and cut them apart with scissors (the noodles are hard to cut with your teeth so make them a reasonable size when you cut them with the scissors).  Arrange the noodles on a platter, so as to form a nest for the salad.

To make the dressing combine the seven ingredients (starting with the garlic) in a blender.  After you combine the first seven ingredients, slowly pour in the oil in order to make the dressing.

Chop up the vegetables for the salad and put them in a large bowl.  Then add the chicken and toss everything together.  Add the dressing to the chicken and vegetables a few spoonfuls at a time (you wont need all the dressing and can serve the excess on the side).  Once you have dressed the salad, place it on top of the noodles, add the peanuts and serve!

Do you have any meals you like to make in the summer?  Feel free to leave comments and help others get out/stay out of their recipe rut!

Looking forward to Pumpkin Wednesday!