Mango Lassi

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Like really, really ridiculously love you.

Seriously.

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Tanya's Kids

Edamame Hummus

We finally have a Trader Joe's in the area and it opened up last Friday. Unfortunately, I missed the grand opening since I was in the SUV with my hubby & 4 kids (2 human & 2 canine) speeding up I-95, trying desperately to NOT MISS the birth of my sister's (Kim) first child, "our baby" (as she is affectionately known in our own little pod) Talia's grand entrance.

Did I make it? You bet I did! With an hour to spare before pushing, my hubby dropped me off at the hospital and took the kiddies home to grandma (who was already at the hospital). Our baby came in an hour and a half later and we couldn't be more thrilled!!! She is GORGEOUS and a GOOOOOOOOOOOOOD baby!!! We're missing her already.

Anyhoo...Jaron and I went to TJ's today, only to find they didn't have Sean's uber-fave edamame hummus (introduced to us by our lovely Kim). So, in honor of my awesome hubby who got off the sub and drove us up to DC in the nick of time...homemade edamame hummus. Which, I dare say, might be better than TJs and definitely healthier!

Tan's Edamame Hummus

1 cup shelled edamame (I used TJ's shelled edamame which yields an oz. more than a cup)

1/2 cup silken tofu

1/4 cup lemon juice, plus more for taste

1 large garlic clove

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, or more till desired consistency

Salt, to taste

Optional ingredients: cumin, cilantro, parsley, white pepper, curry powder, roasted red pepper, basil, etc.

Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor except salt (I used a Vita-mix). Taste and add salt to desired taste. Add more lemon juice or olive oil, if needed.

Serve with crudite, pita crackers, or whatever...but ENJOY!!!

Vita-Mix

So, about a month or so ago, we strolled into the local Costco. OK, so local for us means driving an hour out to get there. ;o) Anyhoo...we walk in on a Saturday at 5pm. This means we have an hour to get everything on our list. No biggie...an hour is pretty feasible. BUT, it becomes UNFEASIBLE when you & the family get suckered into a food demonstration @ 5:15pm for 40 minutes! 6 samples and a Vita-Mix in our cart later, we scramble to get everything on our last. Did we do it. Yes we did. ;o)

Anyhoo...if you haven't heard what a Vita-Mix is, it's a high-performance blender. This bad boy can do everything....literally...grind homemade flours/spices, soups, ice creams, bread, etc. For us, we've used it every single day...at LEAST once a day...usually 2 or more times a day for us. We've been making smoothies galore. We're talking fresh-fruit smoothies here...complete with carrots, spinach, cabbage, inulin, grape seed extract, flax, oatmeal, etc. I always wanted one but shuddered at the price (they are really expensive). But, I don't think we'd ever live without it. So much so with the upcoming move, we're not packing it but bringing it with us instead. Yeah, we're that hooked. "5 a Day"...HA! We're well above that guideline!

My current favorite breakfast is my chocolate peanut butter banana oat smoothie. I used the following ingredients:

• Vanilla Soy Milk & skim milk (more of the former than the latter since girlfriend is lactose-intolerant)
• Skippy's Natural PB & Peanut Butter & Co. Dark Chocolate Dreams PB (although I don't favor chocolate, I do like dark chocolate)
• Bananas
• Ground flax seed
• Old-fashioned oatmeal
• TJ's grape seed extract & inulin
• Wheat germ
• Oat bran
• Spinach

Veggies in a fruit smoothie...only in the Vita-Mix.