Toasted Nori Crisps a.k.a. Seaweed Crack

This post will be unusually short and sweet.  There's no real story here, no tale of glee or woe or self discovery. Nope, this post is just snack food, pure and simple.

These are light, airy, crispy, salty, and aromatic.  They are so quick to prepare that they give almost instant gratification, something that rarely happens when you eat like we have to eat.  Oh yeah, and the are completely and totally addictive.  Therefore, I am giving them the alternative name of Seaweed Crack. One bite and you're hooked. If you have any hesitancy about eating seaweed, these tempting little things will turn you right around and get you on track to being a serious seaweed-eater.  It is like a gateway drug to the world of sea vegetables.

After making and promptly devouring the first batch, you'll want to make another batch. And if you're like me, you probably will.  And then you'll devour that one too.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

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L'arte d'arrangiarsi and a Roasted Red Pepper & Sauerkraut Dip (gluten free, vegan, ACD)

As a longtime art kid, I have found food to be another artistic medium with which to express myself.   I'm starting to think more about how the colors and texture of ingredients will compliment each other, not just the flavors. I'm playing with garnishes and different ways of cutting vegetables for variety and visual appeal. I'm using different colors or shapes of bowls or plates in order to accent or contrast the food.  I put effort forth to make my food look beautiful. It makes me feel connected and inspired and creative, and that makes me feel alive.

Think about how awesome food looks when you order it at a restaurant (a good restaurant, that is). People pull out their cameras. They "ooh" and "ah" and say things like, "Oh my, this just looks too beautiful to eat!".  They talk about how gorgeous their meal was the whole ride home in the car.  They tell their coworkers about it the next day at the office.  They show you pictures on their iPhones.

Yes, we all love beautiful food.

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Pepper-Crusted Cashew Cheese with Herbs (gluten free, vegan, raw, ACD)

Aubree Cherie at Living Free, my choice for the Blogger Secret Ingredient hostess, selected the noble cashew for this week's event. Since the cashew is probably one of my favorite foods, I had to participate.  I've been a bit obsessed with baking this week and my coworkers and friends have been employed as my guinea pigs. Scones, skillet bread, a chocolate torte, blackberry buckwheat swirly buns - my oven has been working overtime.  Anyway, the cashew slid to the back of my mind, and I kind of forgot about it.

Until last night.

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Tuscan Chicken Liver Paté and Paté, Cucumber & Radish "Sliders" (gluten free, ACD)

You know those recipes that knock around in the back of your mind, tormenting and tempting you, but you just never quite get around to tackling them?  I have many.  Olive oil-packed homemade canned tuna.  Potato-free, gluten-free gnocchi.  Really good chocolate cake.  Chicken liver paté.

Yes.  You read that correctly. Chicken liver paté.

I have been dreaming of making my own chicken liver paté for about about two years. I got hooked on paté in France in 2007.  In 2008 I ate amazing paté at a fancy holiday party at my manager's house and almost died from pleasure.  I haven't had liver paté since; store-bought liver paté just has too many things I can't eat.  I've looked up recipes, I've sourced out organic chicken livers at my local co-op, and I've scribbled down ideas. But I just haven't done the deed.

This week the time finally time. Upon seeing this recipe for Tuscan Chicken Liver Paté on Food 52, I knew I had to make it. Anything that includes garlic, onions, anchovies, and capers sounds good to me.  It sounded simple to make and easy to adapt to my needs.  I was a woman on a mission. 

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Grain-Free Sushi with Turnip "Rice" (ACD, gluten free, raw & vegan option)

Sushi is my I-don't-feel-like-cooking standby meal.  I have to clarify, however, that when I say "sushi" I don't mean "sushi" by any traditional definition.  For me, sushi is anything wrapped in nori.  Most of the time my sushi has nothing to do with rice, or even grains at all. I'll spread a layer of any grated vegetable or cooked spaghetti squash, and layer in whatever other vegetables or protein I feel like, from sliced turkey to sunflower seed pate to canned tuna.  I just really love nori, so anything wrapped up in it is a winning meal for me.  This is one of my favorite grain-free "sushi" options, using grated raw turnip instead of rice.

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