dandelion.. fritters?

I don't follow many blogs, but out of the few that I do avidly keep up on, "longest acres" is definitely one of the most interesting. It's run by Kate, an urban farmer who -- oh, well, why don't you visit her blog and read up on it yourself? I have a knack for making interesting things sound dull. Trust me, you'll be sucked right in by her posts and lifestyle (whenever I visit her blog, I just want to go out and buy my own chickens and cows)!

Anyway, Kate recently posted a recipe for dandelion fritters -- yeah, deep-fried little pancakes made from those yellow weeds that grow in your yard. Honestly they look delicious to me and I've always wanted to learn how to cook from 'organic' recipes (they give me that warm-n-fuzzy, bohemian-homey feeling -- I am one with the earth!) so I'm saving the recipe here. Once I make it and try it out myself, I'll post the results here! :

2-3 cups of dandelion flowers
1 local egg, beaten
1 cup local milk
1/4 c all-purpose flower (king arthur or other locally milled or grown)
1 c cornmeal (from butterworks, or grow your own)
1 t salt
1 t pepper
1 c veggie oil. i used EVOO, because i read the recipe hastily and therefor not thoroughly and it was scrumptious


directions:

1. for sauce, whip ingredients and set aside. serve with fritters. (again, use whatever sauce you can imagine, including the chevre and horseradish, or my yogurt with ramps).
2.  collect your dandelions from a nice clean pasture (not one where your dog or boyfriend pee). if they look clean, you needn't wash them.
3. mix up your batter including all the ingredients save the oil and the flowers.
4. put your oil in pan and heat. you want about a 1/4 in of oil. CAREFUL. hot oil has a very unpleasant reaction when contacted with the skin.
5. when the oil is hot dip the flowers into the batter while holding onto the stem and then drop them flower side down in the hot bubbling oil. again, careful.
6. cook until goden brown. fork or spoon them out of the oil and serve warm with the sauce of your choosing.

i'm so unhappy

especially when I'm back home. Don't know why that is. I was so excited to come home-- like, ecstatic -- but now that I'm here, all I want to do is leave..

But I don't want to go back to college.
And I can't stay inside all the time.

I just honestly hate people. So fucking much. Why do they exist.
Why do I exist?

Bring on the Spring!

 

Blouse from UO | Jeans from ASOS | Cross-body from Mom, vintage Dooney & Bourke | Wedges from Gap

Absolutely loving the colored jeans trend! To be honest, I used to think color jeans were a little ghetto, but my how times have changed. The only problem with light colored jeans, especially with my body type (don't exactly have the ideal, thin-n-slim waist and thighs deal going on) is that it's hard to wear them without wedges/heels cause they just make me look sausage-legged. Lord, why could you not have given me an impervious-to-fat waist and long legs? 

Just kidding though. As much as I bash my body, I'm pretty happy with it. It's not perfect, but it's healthy.

Feelin' the turquoise-teal kinda colors, ya dig?

Anyway, speaking of health, that segways us right into my next topic! (for once)

*Segways*
I'm sleep-deprived, alone, and obviously like that word.. apologies.

Besides awesome weather and new outfits, spring also heralds the onset of one of the most dreadful and wonderful times of the year: bikini season. . . AKA, the time of the year when Julia vows to exercise and eat right to look her best for summer and fails miserably.

Unfortunately, I don't have lacrosse anymore to keep me active, and god knows when the last time I went to the gym was, but I'm going to really, REALLY try and start exercising and eating right!

Quick interjection: I actually just weighed myself and ... either my roommate's scale is broken, or I lost about 3 pounds ... I'm being Twilight Zoned over here, I can't -- especially considering that I've eaten half a box of rainbow cookies in the last few days, haven't been to the gym in months, and don't monitor my diet. And yes, I know that muscle weighs less than fat but can we just celebrate the miracle that is me, Julia Oh, not gaining any weight Freshman year!?.. or we can wait before I jinx myself -- KNOCK ON WOOD KNOCK ON WOOD, SWEET JESUS, KNOCK ON WOOD.

... Anyway, yeah, I'm not really looking to lose any weight. If it comes with the exercise (which I doubt) so be it, but I'm aiming for the toneage. I've always envied the girls who had the flat, toned bellies -- you know, the whole 'line' going down the stomach thing? There was a time when I was able to do hundreds of push ups without feet support; now, I can barely manage 20 without something to anchor my feet under. So sad (but actually).

Plus, I've noticed my butt's shrinking ... that cannot happen. My butt is my only physically redeeming asset.
...
Oh yeah, I went there.

Anyway, I leave you with these horrific images:


No suckage, no flexing, no waiting an hour after my last meal: this is pretty much my tum-tum's starting point. It's not type obesity, but I can obviously use some work.

Let's consider this coming Monday, "Day 1"! I'll be going on a 3ish mile run with a couple of housemates -- let's see if I still got some thunder in these thighs (yeah, I went there again)! 

 Wish me luck! xox