I learned how to cook in high school by reading Vegetarian Times magazine. Haven't looked at it in years until I bought a groupon deal for it this year. The July/August issue features "Eggplant 5 ways, new ways to cook eggplant". Now I never eat eggplant so I thought this would be a fun challenge. Did you know eggplants are actually a berry and its purple skin is full of antioxidants? It needs to be salted before cooking to bring out its juices that carry the bitter flavors, and it tightens and firms up the flesh, making the eggplant less likely to soak up as much oil. I found this out the hard way when the first batch I made I did on the frying pan and I had to keep adding oil to my pan because it would completely disappear! The next time I made it I looked up eggplant cooking tips and decided to roast it in the oven.

I saw this recipe and was intrigued since I've never had bok choy, surprised to find it's so small in the grocery store, I was expecting some large leafy vegetable. lol You eat both the green leafy part and the white stem. It's incredibly high in  vitamins C, A and K and has all the essential minerals.
I simplified the recipe by just using eggplant, bok choy, edamame, 1.5 TB of 365 peanut sauce over udon noodles (which I measured for serving size). It came out to 324 calories, 15 grams of protein, 9 grams of fiber.

On my toes I have on pale purple Zoya Heather. It's a bit sheer though, had to do several coats. I'm wearing the sandals I told you about in this post. Stella McCarthy designed a similar jeweled sandal but much more expensive so I thought this was a real steal!

Peacocks are my favorite bird because they're just so regal and beautiful with their iridescent tails! That's why I use the peacock feather as my copywrite stamp on all my images and in the url bar of my blog.
When I went to Hawaii four years ago I saw beautiful peacocks who walked freely right next to me! When I went to Panama saw white peacocks!

A few years ago I wanted to buy some peacock earrings but I wondered how do they get the feathers? So I researched it and found out that the peacock sheds his feathers yearly in a process called molting. It's the male peacock who has this beautiful train and it gets larger each year! It takes seven months to regrow and he uses it to attract females for mating season by raising and lowering then rustling the fan of feathers. Peacocks are native to South Asia and the Central Africa and come in blue, green, white, light brown or purple coloring.

Here are some interesting facts:

A peacock is male; a female is a peahen. Collectively they are peafowl.

Baby peacocks are called peachicks.

The females are usually brown so they can blend in with the background and lay eggs safely.

The Indian peafowl is the national bird of India and is protected in that country. In the Hindu religion, the peafowl is a sacred bird, because the spots on the peacock’s tail symbolize the eyes of the gods.

In Islam, a peacock stood guard at the gates of Paradise. According to the Bible, King Solomon brought peacocks to Jerusalem.

Peacocks can fly short distances and usually roost in trees from dusk to dawn.

Suitable males may gather harems of several females, each of which will lay three to five eggs. 

Females are believed to choose their mates according to the size, color, and quality of these outrageous feather trains.

Ever have those days where getting to the gym takes much more effort than your actual workout? Without proper fuel before exercise, your workout is bound to feel sluggish. A pre-workout formula before your workout is key to pushing yourself to the next level. Get better results with our best selling product E&E Energy and Endurance Pre-workout Formula. It will improve your energy, endurance, strength, and focus because its designed to help you power through and maximize every moment of your workouts. It's a blend of advanced nitric oxide boosters, amino acids, natural energizers, electrolytes, and essential B vitamins, created to help you start fast and finish strong. It has no artificial flavors, sweeteners, or preservatives. Just mix it with water and consume 15-30 minutes before your workout.

Need something healthy to sip on while you enjoy the festivities? Try out the new Vanilla Shakeology flavor! Only 4 days left for free shipping!

I made this tres leches flag cake a couple years ago.

But I found some healthy fun red, white and blue 4^th of July fun dessert ideas I wanted to share. I'm definitely a fan of cutting fruit into fun shapes as I did here and here. The middle picture uses star cookie cutters. The picture on the right is watermelon, apples and blueberries, to keep apples from browning brush with fresh lemon  or lime juice, the straw keeps them all in place.