Radical Eats

Cameron and I went to Radical Eats last night. We shared the jalapeno poppers with vegan cream cheese and a yummy dipping sauce. I had the bahn mi tacos with tofu and sprouts and Cameron had the ginormous falafel burger with a kale avocado salad on the side. The weather has been wonderful in Houston so we sat outside on the patio. After our wonderful vegan meal we decided to go to the Chocolate Bar where we shared a slice of FLANtastic Cheesecake with coffee. Of all the restaurants in Houston I have to say Radical Eats is probably my favorite. There are so many vegetarian and vegan options and everything I have ever eaten there is really good. The waitstaff is always very friendly and helpful too. So glad they moved from their old location on Fulton to Montrose.

The Cat & The Ducklings (Animal Odd Couples)

I usually don't post videos but this one is too cute not to share.

Pearl

Pearl's mom took this adorable picture of her. Pearl has become my favorite dog now that I don't have any of my own.

Best Mother's Day Gift

My daughter sent me the most amazing Mother's Day gift, a gift certificate for Kiva, a non profit that lends money to low-income entrepreneurs and students. I choose 4 different people/groups loaning each 25.00
The first was to a person in El Salvador who sells fruits and vegetables. The second was to a group in Ecuador called Los Intocables to help purchase a sewing machine. The third was to Zamiq in Azerbaijan to help with his fruit orchard. The last was to Isabel Jose in Nicaragua to help with his free trade coffee farm. After I did that I felt bad because I had completely ignored Africa so I picked another recipient Anastasia from Kisauni, Kenya who operates a retail shop selling wheat, flour and rice.
I did a blog about Kiva a long time ago and had meant to donate something but I'm not sure if I ever did. Here is a link to their website http://www.kiva.org/

This is a picture of Los Intocables.

Smokey LeGrand

My Dad and I adopted Smokey from the Houston SPCA in 1969. She was his favorite cat and lived a long long life with him after I left home. He loved her so much he had a portrait painted of her. Today would be my Dad's 98th birthday.

PawPaw and Friends

Two more pictures of my Dad with Smokey and Tam in his favorite recliner.

Pearl

I took this picture of Pat's dog Pearl when she was visiting last weekend. I used the camera on my iPad and then applied the noir filter. Pearl is super high energy and reminds me a bit of Ginger when she was young.

A Belated Birthday Celebration

Here are pictures from our wonderful dinner last night at Nidda Thai on Westheimer. I had the Red Curry with Tofu. Cameron had Nidda Veggie (mixed vegetables stir-fried with Thai herb sauce) and we shared the Fresh Rolls with tofu and the Pad Thai. A really yummy meal. We were celebrating Cameron's birthday which was last week.





After dinner we went to The Chocolate Bar on West Alabama.

Annie Laura Magee Robertson

Annie Laura Magee Robertson (1882-1967) was my grandmother's sister.

Walter Andrew Magee

I just love these old pictures. Walter Andrew Magee (1884 - 1942) was the brother of my grandmother Mollie Ora Magee Wells.

John Wesley Magee and Family

Here is a picture of John Wesley Magee (1886-1962) and Oklahoma Ellis Magee (1889-1970) with their children. John was my grandmother's brother.

A few more pictures of the Oliver Family

My great great grandparents on my mother's side.

Addie Ola Wells Willis

Another one of my grandfather's sisters Addie Ola Wells Willis (1887 - 1963)


The boy in the picture Is Baxter Henry Willis, Jr (1912-1938). The girls are Martha Willis and Rebecca Willis.
Martha was married to Joseph Taylor Hudson. They lived in Spartenburg, South Carolina. Rebecca was married to Clarence Zipp of Beaumont.

Dinner and a Play

On Friday my friend Alice and I went to Radical Eats. I had a fried green tomato sandwich and sweet potato fries. My friend had a beet mushroom onion dish. I forgot to bring my camera (I'm still not used to this all food has to be photographed thing) but the waiter was nice enough to take these pictures and email them to me. After dinner we went to Rice and saw a student production of Little Shop of Horrors.

Susan Lena Wells White

Here are 2 pictures of my mother's aunt, Susan Lena Wells White (1882-1968). She is the sister of my mother's father James Daniel Wells. My mother was named after her.

My Mother's Family

Today would have been my mother's 96th birthday. I have posted just about all of the pictures I have of her on this blog but was able to find pictures of her maternal grandmother Canzadie Oliver Magee (1862-1949) and maternal great grandparents Andrew Jackson Oliver (1832-1919) and Cynthia Ann Faver Oliver (1843-1920).

My Maternal Grandparents and Aunt

I found this picture of my grandparents and aunt that one of my second cousins had posted on a website.

A Brilliant Mind

Congratulations to my brilliant daughter who received a University Outstanding Teaching Fellow Award at the University of North Texas in Denton last Friday.  She received her masters degree in math last year and is now working on a PhD.

Cranberry Quinoa

Ingredients

2 cups quinoa
4 cups water
½ teaspoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt
2 ribs celery, chopped
3-4 Tablespoons green onions, sliced thin
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup pecans, toasted and chopped
Dressing
5 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons cilantro, minced
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
Dash pepper

•Place water and quinoa in a 2-quart pot. Add ¼ tsp. salt and ½ tsp. oil. Bring to a boil and then simmer at a very low heat. Do not stir. Cook covered for about 15 minutes until small peaks form on top of quinoa and liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat. Stand covered for 10 minutes before transferring to a bowl and cool to room temperature. (Can cool faster in refrigerator if preferred.)
•Gently mix dressing in small bowl or measuring cup with a fork.
•Add dressing to quinoa and mix in.
•Add in vegetables, nuts and cranberries and mix well.
•Serve at room temperature.
Serves: 4-6

I made this over the weekend and I have to say it's one of my favorite quinoa dishes. My roommate enjoyed it too and took this picture.

Rosie

November 7,1999 - March 28, 2014

I had forgotten how nice it is to work on a beautiful campus. The weather has been wonderful and I've been having my lunch outside everyday at the Brochstein Pavilion. Here is a picture of where I sit and a picture of one of the many beautiful sculptures on the Rice campus. This sculpture "Mirror" is by Jaume Plensa.

These are not my pictures.

Last night Cameron and I had dinner with an old friend of mine from the MFAH. He is also Cameron's teacher at Glassell, a nice coincidence. I hadn't seen him in probably 20 years and we had a good time catching up and reminiscing about all the fun we had working together so many years ago. After dinner at Baba Yega, Cameron and I went to The Chocolate Bar and had some wonderful ice cream.

Dinner and Photography

Last night Cameron and I went out to eat at Pasha where he took these pictures. Then we went to an photography exhibit "The Ground on Which I Stand : A Photographic Essay and Oral Histories from Tamina, A Freedman's Town" at the Rice Media Center, part of FotoFest Houston.

Here are some pictures of the delicious lunch I shared with Cameron's family at Nippon. After lunch we went to the ballet. It's so nice having weekends off.

Quinoa Mushroom Kale Recipe

Here is my latest quinoa dish. I made this one up so it doesn't have a name.


Ingredients
1 C. quinoa (2 cups cooked)
1 bunch lacinato kale
1 onion chopped
1 container of mushrooms sliced or chopped
several cloves of garlic, minced
Bragg Liquid Aminos (soy sauce alternative)
olive oil

Saute onion, mushrooms, and garlic in olive oil. When the onions are clear add the kale which has been torn into medium size pieces (stems removed) Continue sauteing until the kale cooks down but not too long.
Cook the quinoa in water with some Bragg Liquid Amino. I used 1/8 of a cup last night but you could use a little more or add some to the dish after cooking to taste. When the quinoa is ready just mix it all together for a super healthy meal. I made enough to have it for dinner all week.