Apples, Tomtens, Bears and Beets, oh MY!

wild apples make the best cider

Dusty Rose Hydrangeas are my favorite fall flower

Little Bear is off and running, always. 

This book is SO breathtakingly beautiful and inspiring. Olive and I could easily loose an hour in it's magic

A VERY fancy Tomten hat found in the garden 

Walking home....

Every girl needs a fabulous straw. ;) 

Coconut Curry with garden veggies, sprouted tofu and lime (recipe coming SOON!)

This beet salad, which was a last minute throw together, turned out to be a perfect side dish to the coconut curry we had for dinner tonight. It's also fabulous on it's own and could make a great light dinner or lunch. It's REALLY quick to make, which is always a good thing, but be forewarned, you may look like you just murdered someone! ;)

*Fun little beet-y facts*
Beets are fantastic liver and colon cleansers
They make great natural dyes (as you will see very soon;)
You can juice 'em (one per glass of veg juice), roast em', or eat 'em raw
You can eat the beet greens too!
Beets turn your pee RED- sometimes for days. YOU ARE NOT DYING!

Raw Beet Salad with a Ginger Lime Maple Dressing
Serves 4

For the salad:
2 large beets, peeled
1/2 a large celeriac root, peeled
1 large sweet/tang apple, not peeled

Grate the above in a box grater and place in a med size bowl.

For the dressing:
In a drinking glass size mason jar add:
1) the juice of 1/2 a large lime, or the juice of 1 whole small lime
2) 1 Tbsp of finely grated ginger, pulp and juice. *Best if you can use a zester-- if you don't have one then use the smallest setting on your box grater. Squeeze the ginger pulp in your hand to extract the "juice" for the dressing. Discard the fiber.
3)1 Tbsp of tamari or high quality soy sauce
4 1 Tbsp of TOASTED sesame oil
5) 2 tsp REAL maple syrup
5) 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Put a lid on the top and shake it baby, shake it! Give it a taste and adjust as needed. If it seems too tangy, add a touch more tamari or maple. If it seems too salty, add a little more lime or maple (can't get enough of that stuff!;).

Add as much dressing as you'd like to the salad and toss. Eat immediately! :)

Other great additions to this salad are toasted pine nuts, lime zest and fresh cilantro.

Hope you like it as much as we did! :)