Category Archives: Review

Thoughtful Thursday Best-ever Beefless Stew

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With the cooler temps finally here in the South, I wanted to try a new vegan soup recipe. But I wanted something really hearty that would be filling and I found it. This is a recipe for “Best-ever Beefless Stew” with portobello mushrooms taking the place of beef. If you’re not a fan of portobellos, I’m sure you could use another type of mushroom that would taste just as good.

I gotta say this was one of the most delicious and satisfying stews I’ve ever had! A few things I would change to the recipe is to add a little salt and pepper to taste and it also calls for fresh parsley as a topping. But I wasn’t too crazy with flavor of the parsley with the stew. I would recommend giving it a try anyways and see for yourself, you may end up liking it.

This recipe was published in the latest Forks Over Knives, “100 Best Plant-Based Recipes,” 2021 and it can also be found on their website “Best-ever Beefless Stew.” It was really easy to make with everyday ingredients.

Forks Over Knives 100 Best Plant-Based Recipes 2021 image 0

If you’re interested in purchasing a copy of this issue, it’s available on the Forks Over Knives Website.

Hope you’ll give this tasty recipe a try 😊

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“Health is the first form of Wealth. Invest in yours by eating whole, unprocessed foods.” ~ Dr. Axe

Thoughtful Thursday Book Review

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Discover Your Dharma: a Vedic Guide to Living Your Best ...

Sahara Rose is an author, inspirational speaker and host of “Highest Self Podcast” which I enjoy listening to. In her latest book, “Discover Your Dharma,” Sahara shares her ancient wisdom but with a modern day flair. I recently finished reading her book and loved it!

When I started reading, I didn’t have any expectations as to where it will go. But I have to say, that I was quite surprised in the accuracy of finding my Doshas and using them to fulfill my Dharma.

In Ayurveda, Doshas are the 3 energies that make up every human being, Vata (air), Pitta (fire) and Kapha (earth). We have all three but in varying amounts. Your Dharma is to find your soul’s purpose.

The physical imbalances we experience in our minds and body are a reflection of what is going on at our soul’s level. So having a better understanding of your Doshas and Dharma will help you to heal your body and move forward which Sahara does an excellent job of explaining in her book. She gives you the tools and knowledge you need to better understand your soul’s purpose.

I also learned that your Dharma is not set it stone. You may end up taking a completely different path than when you started on your journey or you may just make minor changes to the path you’re on. But ultimately you need to live a life that makes you happy and share your special gifts and talents with the world in a positive and fulfilling way.

I highly recommend reading “Discover Your Dharma.” It’s a well written book that is easy to understand with tools to help you find your soul’s purpose. To find out more about Sahara Rose, visit her site at iamsahararose.com.

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“The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give your gift away.” ~ Pablo Picasso

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Thoughtful Thursday Arteza Watercolor and Mixed Media Journal

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I recently bought a pack of 2, 8.25″ x 8.25″ Arteza Watercolor & Mixed Media Journals online. They’re beautiful journals with a hard cover. Each journal has 68 pages of 110 lb, cold pressed, double sided paper. They also contain a ribbon book mark and an expandable pocket on the inside back cover.

As most of you know, watercolor is my favorite medium and normally I paint on 140 lb cold pressed watercolor paper. I thought it would work well enough since it is marketed as being “Ideal for Watercolor Techniques & Mixed Media.”

I’ve been using this journal for the ColorLoversChallenge and was really bummed when I saw how badly it handled water for my first full watercolor painting. Notice the clear clips on each side in the photo below. The paper was curling so bad that I had to let it sit overnight with heavy books on top to flatten it out and then use clips the next day to hold the pages down for the photo.

The painting below was made by coating the pages with gesso and then painting with acrylic paints. The paper still buckled and curled but no where near as bad as with the watercolor. That’s partly because the gesso and acrylic paints add weight to the paper to keep it flatter and there is less water/moisture involved.

But watercolors are my favorite medium so I had to improvise if I wanted to continue using the journal for the challenge. I came up with the idea to paint on 140lb watercolor paper, cut it to size and then glue it into the journal as in the photo below. The perk with doing this extra step is that if you don’t like your painting, you can toss it and do another one before gluing it in. This way you’re always happy with the end result 😊

Bottom line is these are well made journals with quality paper that has a slight texture to it. However, I would not recommend these for use with wet mediums because they just don’t handle the water and moisture well.

Out of a 5 star rating I give these a 3 ⭐⭐⭐

I’ve had a lot of fun experimenting with colors in the challenge and it’s been a bit of a challenge working with this new journal. But I love an adventure!

I hope this review helps you before making a purchase and if you have any other questions about these journals, please let me know.

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