Summer Salad

I recently joined Twitter, which is a challenge with it's 140 character limit, as you see my novels, below. Nevertheless, it will help me connect with others.
http://twitter.com/leangreencafe

One of the recipes on 101Cookbooks.com looked good, and I had the cukes and cherry tomatoes, basil in the garden, etc.
Here the link is below:
http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/cherry-tomato-couscous-recipe.html

I didn't have couscous, so I used quinoa. I cooked 1 c. quinoa and 2 c. filtered water for 20 min. on low heat, covered, (like cooking rice) and let it cool.
Add: fresh cukes. I had some small crisp babies fresh from the vine...I striped the peel a bit, cut off the ends and cut them into pieces. (Thank goodness for friends who share their garden produce. My daughter is hoping for some 'extra' green and yellow wax beans today, from my garden today when we meet for a Sunday walk together.)
Cherry tomatoes and yellow pear tomatoes cut in half and added.
Either a red or Walla Walla onion, or green onions added to the mix.
I sliced a half can of black olives.
1 can drained garbanzo (chickpeas) beans, or some frozen (defrosted) you've cooked up ahead of time to have on hand for quick hummus recipes.
Basil or cilantro

Here's Heidi's www.101cookbook recipe for another quinoa salad dressing she has on her site:
I used almond butter instead of tahini, as that's what I had on the shelf.
I used lemon juice and a bit of lime zest....
OR: you can use the olive oil and lemon/lime juice of the link's recipe, above...

Tahini Dressing:
1 garlic clove, smashed and chopped
1/4 cup tahini
Zest of one lemon
scant 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons hot water
scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

Next recipe I'll share is one for zucchini soup. It's from a chef I know of, who has been cooking for a long time. It's a blended soup, with a hint of bacon or ham. Makes me want to make some cornbread or bread sticks, or a homemade loaf of french bread with poppy seeds on top....
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My Scappoose home is for sale. You can find it on Portland's Craig's List under Scappoose Country real estate for sale. I've downsized to Vernonia, and am even thinking of selling this one and traveling until I find a place with enough sun and a college I could take some classes in, and perhaps teach some. The winter commute to civilization over wet or icy winding roads does not appeal to me. I've thought of getting a room mate for this house, and keeping it, as the spring and summer through fall here is wonderful. We'll see what shakes. I have a lot of work to do. I want to start another blog about my coming books. One is called When Love is Not Enough, and chronicles the struggles and destruction of a family, hopes and dreams with the price of sexual abuse. I want to also write about America's treatment of their elderly, the health"care" system, etc. My poetry and recipes will be sprinkled in some of them. I have a daughter who says I'm like a mirror, challenging others to be as open, which is hard for some. My belief is that we are our brother's keeper, and hiding from our problems only complicates life. If we strive to live honestly, and share what we have and know with others, we perhaps will leave the planet better than we found it.

I'm an Independent Shaklee Distributor not only for income, but because their natural supplements work, and everyone needs to be using their non-toxic green cleaners in their home. This company has been making green cleaners for a better safer home and planet for over 50 years. The Get Clean kit comes with everything you need to trade out your poisonous carbon-producing (all the water shipped instead of concentrate, and packaging clogging our landfills) cleaners with healthy alternatives, made with corn and coconut surfactants, etc.

The $149 Get Clean kit (one of Oprah's favorites) replaces $3400 worth of product. The question is: If I can show you Green non-toxic cleaners that are less money, and work as well or better, would you be interested in changing brands? The only product not costing less, is the Basic Laundry liquid, made of corn and coconut surfactants, that cleans your plumbing pipes instead of clogging them and isn't dumping phosphates in our already compromised waterways. I use 1 oz. or 2T. in my laundry loads. It's also a stain and grease spotter and handwashables laundry detergent.

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Here's a quick link:
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My best---
Pics are of my Scappoose Home...