My Dharma Swan Station Fondant Cake for our LOST Season 6 Party!! Weee!

Yahoo! Look what I did! Weeeee! All by myself! FROM SCRATCH too! I am such a LOST nerd! Ok- so my original plan was to go to Sam's Club or Costco or whatever and ask them to please take this LOST Swan Station logo and airbrush it on to a cake for me...like how they do it with photographs. I just wanted to have a cool cake to bring to our Season 6 LOST Premeire party... so I had the ingenious idea to have a LOST cake made...

Well, I went to Sam's club today and the girl there told me that they weren't allowed to reprint a logo or photo from a television show onto a cake without the express written permission of the copywrite owner. What?! It's a cake people... but point taken - guess a major retailer like Sam's Club can't take any chances... though the evidence would soon be destroyed via someone's piehole. Whateveah. Frustrated... I decided to head up to Michael's. I mean what the heck... how hard could this be? It's a CAKE! And I LOVE CAKE!

Well... guess who taught themself how to make fondant tonight?! I'll give you a hint... it wasn't Benjamin Linus! I picked up a spring form 9" cake pan, some icing, icing coloring (black) and headed home. I didn't even pick up a BOX cake! Nope. This baby was made FOR REAL from scratch.

I found Paula Deen's easy 1234 cake recipe and made that. (I used 1 cup of yogurt instead of one of the sticks of butter to make it a little healthier). I didn't have self-rising flour so I found this recipe online to substitute. The batter was enough for me to make 2 nine inch cakes so I layered them with buttercream icing in between and all over. Wow! A fun double layer cake. I guess I could have used the recipe for my famous coconut cake but I wanted to try something else out... something totally basic. After I made fondant using this recipe, I rolled out the white fondant and dyed the other batch black. Then it was just a matter of using a steak knife to cut out the black parts and the swan and pasting them onto the cake with a pastry brush and some filtered water. Neato!!!!

I had some help cutting out the shape of the swan from the other LOST geek (and a gorgeous one at that) that I live with. I'm not exactly Ms. Artistic when it comes to drawing - and Lord knows I do not have a steady hand nor the patience to be consistent... so lucky me for being able to break my brilliant husband's concentration (he had been writing for 14 hours straight) by giving him a little swan crafting break.

Now- the LOST party is obviously not until Feb. 2nd... and that's like a week away! I'm going to make another cake this weekend ... probably Sunday night to have it ready for Tuesday night... so what to do with this one? I can't wait to taste it!!!!

I think I will treat my LOST obsessed co-workers to this on Friday...or Thursday (the old time LOST watching night circa Seasons 1,2,3)  whattya think? Think they'd like to try it out?

I still have to put the DHARMA letters on there... but for the most part this masterpiece is d_o_n_e.

DONE! Dang, It looks pretty good! hehehehee!

So excited!!

So fun!

Enjoy!
XOxoxo <3 Udo

Kale Chips = OH YES!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! My new obsession..... KALE CHIPS!!!! OMG! These delectable dainty little 'chips' are EXTRAORDINARY!!!! I just love them! Wowow! Good bye pringles and hello slimmer thighs! Ahha... Delicious!

Kale Chips:
1 bunch kale
pink sea salt
extra virgin cold pressed olive oil
lemon juice

Cut or tear up the kale leaves (and stems- or you can remove the stems if you want) and put into a big bowl. Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil and lemon juice over the leaves, give it a good sprinkly of sea salt (pink is my favorite). Massage the leaves for a good 5 minutes until they soften up a bit. Places leaves in a dehydrator - careful not to overlap them. Dehydrate on 115 degrees for about 6 hours or until crispy. WOW! My mouth is watering just talking about them!! Wowza kapow! Healthy delicious and full of nutrients! Eeeeee!

Enjoy!
Xoxox <3 Udo

Wanna feel good?

It's so easy to forget what really matters in life when we are lulled into boredom by the everyday things we have to do as adults. Practical concearns like keeping house and paying bills can consume you if you let them. Sometimes we forget to nourish our inner spirit and to stay focused because we distract ourselves with things that do not matter. Are you living your life with passion and purpose? What is your passion? What makes you crazy excited? What do you look forward to working on? Instead of comparing yourself to others, remind yourself that there is enough love, abundance, creativity, and great ideas for everyone in this universe! The creative mind is overflowing with peace, joy, and happiness- all you need to do is claim yours.

Remember- being happy is not a gift, it is not a thing that happens to you when you've finally made it, it is not some freak luck thing that happens to some people and not to others... Here's a secret....

BEING HAPPY is a CHOICE.

Make the decision to be happy! =D Make the decision to feel good today. Decide to feel love, to share love, to live today as if it were your last! Don't worry about what will happen this week or next week or if you will figure out your future... just take it one day at a time. The first step towards living the life you want is to live as if you already have it. Cultivate a positive attitude. If you just don't know what to do and you find yourself doing nothing... do this. Turn your thoughts to positive self talk. Instead of sitting on the sofa- go for a walk and on your walk, think positively to yourself. Instead of surfing the internet for hours on end sit quietly in meditation- and focus your thoughts on positive and loving ideas. When worries or anxiety get a grip on you, take a deep breath and use positive self talk. This is the very first step towards creating the reality you deserve.

Here are some videos to help get you started.

• The first one is really upbeat and feel good.
• The second one is Lilou Mace (a youtube personality) guiding you through a quiet meditation.
• The third one is a wonderful Reiki meditation from a soundtrack that I use when I do Reiki on my husband (he loooooves his weekly Reiki session - so cute!!! It really soothes his mind from a a hectic work week and bolsters his creativity).
• The last one takes quotes from the Secret to remind us what to focus on.... whew!

Remember...

Every journey towards something...

is a journey away from something else.

Enjoy!
Xoxox <3>Udo

Thought for the day...

I'm too blessed to be stressed!

I have an attitude of gratitude!

Learn it.

Live it.

Pass it on!

Feel good today!

Gluten Free is for Me!

Good Morning and Good Afternoon! The gluten free pizza came out delicious!!! My husband and I ate a whole pie ourselves before my mom in law and my aunt in law came over. They really liked it too, but they also really liked the pizza that was delivered! lol... I really and truly enjoyed this gluten free crust and the low fat way the pizza was made.

I used a standard pizza marinara sauce and topped the crust with fat free mozzerella cheese and pink sea salt, with fresh basil leaves. It was INCREDIBLE!!!! Oh my goodness, the crust was so hearty and healthy, you felt good just eating it! I love the yeasty aroma from fresh baked crust too. I will be making this pizza for my cutie pie and myself on Fridays going forward. I still don't know what it means to be gluten free, so if you know of a great website or other educational link to send me- please do!

Meanwhile in the backyard this morning I spotted not one but TWO adorable cats! So funnnn! I love cats. If I wasn't married I would in fact be the crazyazz cat lady. I'd have them crawling all over my tiny house. Just love them!!!! Well I have spotted two feline friends in the backyard of our country home and I am thrilled to have these out door pets. (Aren't I silly? I can't help it. I adore animals but having pets in the house is a no-no due to messes and allergies etc.) I love pups too! And I think our neighbors just got themselves a little canine.

As soon as we replace our dear digital camera I promise to post pics of all things neighborhoody. Speaking of people in your neighborhood... still haven't met any of our new neighbors yet. :\ I'm hoping they will bring us some baked goods once the spring hits... lol.

At work yesterday I was so happy to have some students stop by and chat about nothing in particular. It feels really good when they just pop in to talk about their day!

Well, I'm off for a jog in my cold gear (brrr), on second thought.... hmrph... Why am I so turned off by walking/jogging alone? Gah. So boring! To be fair, a few times over winter break I was all charged up and jogged around the neighborhood (a 3 mile loop) by myself. My dh (darling husband) was home too but no jogging for him when he had a chest cold. I like when we jog together. It's more fun. It's a bit stark out there right now and I know we have a long run planned for tomorrow afternoon... so perhaps I will do The Wave for a good 80 minutes instead. Love the Wave! Yep. That's what I'm going to do. Jog can wait for tomorrow...off to the market for some quinoa and oats...

Later tonight I will be making a delicious dinner for two... I'm going to make the pork tenderloin with eggplant relish found on page 75 of the Food Nework Magazine (Jan/Feb) issue. It looks like a terrific low cal dinner with only 297 cals per serving. Perfect!

Enjoy your day and remember to smile to yourself (you'll look prettier and people will wonder what you're up to!)

XOxoxo <3>Udo

Telescopes & Microscopes and.. TGIF!

Wooo! Here we are... one step closer to the weekend... FRI DAY! FRIIII DAY!!! FRIII DAYYYYY!!! Yeayyyy!!! Tonight I will attempt to make a gluten free pizza. The dough is made and ready to go. It is chilling in the fridge until I get home from work tonight. I think I will either try to make that pear and walnut topping I mentioned here, or maybe I will chicken out and stick with marinara sauce, low-moisture mozzerella, and fresh basil leaves... decisions, decisions....

In other news, I bought a food dehydrator yesterday. Very excited to use this. Funny, for the past several months I've been eyeing up all sorts of wacky raw recipes that require a food dehydrator... and now that I have one... I can't seem to locate one off the bat! What the? I'll have to keep a peep out for some wonderful dehydrator snacks and post them in UdoUncooked.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch... the transition back to raw is beginning to pay off in other areas. I've lost 2lbs this week and (if you count back since Christmas) I've lost 6lbs total! The 6lbs have been coming and going over the past 4 weeks so I'm not officially counting it as a total loss... I'm not even really trying to lose weight really, just changing up some of my eating habits to include more fresh fruits, fresh juices and fresh green smoothies, more raw... mid-raw, eh? Certainly not high-raw... (yet) but I hope to venture back that way again in the coming months. And trying to leave out white sugar and flour... hence, the gluten free goodies and sprouted snacks.

Of course this in no way indicates that I won't be gleefully stuffing my pie hole with the REDICULOUS and AMAZING Dharma Initiative cake I am making (read: having someone else make!) for my husband's LOST Season 6 Premeire party in 2 weeks.... Weeee!

Onward! To a wonderful weekend!!! I feel like we are on the verge of something beautiful... something magical is in there air... I hope that you will embrace that feeling too this weekend... and keep a sense of anticipation about you!

Today's quote:

Love looks through a telescope, while envy looks through a microscope.

Ponder it.
Practice it, even if just for today. 

Please share it.

Enjoy!

XXOoxoXO <3>Udo

Gluten Free Pizza and Avocado Ice Cream!

Stopped at the health food store on the way home from work tonight and picked up some wonderful gluten free pizza dough. From what I understand gluten free also digests like a vegetable just like sprouted... is this correct? I must research this further... The man at the store said that gluten free products digest like vegetables. He asked me if I was moving away from a flour based diet... and I said... I wasn't sure what I was doing yet but I was definately incorporating more sprouted products into my diet. We talked about flour and how it is very binding and clogs up your digestive system... just like GLUE! Flour and water together are the same things we used to make paste in kindergarden, remember?

At any rate I am thrilled and excited to make this gluten free pizza on Friday! I also picked up some organic succutant, some more sprouted spelt and sprouted spring wheat flours,an additional bag of sprouted poppy seed bagels, and these mind blowing vegan spice bars... I have to find out how they were made- OUTRAGEOUSLY DELICIOUS!

For dinner tonight we had a delicious bowl of chicken pot-au-feu. It was light, airy, and very filling! Recipe is found on page 89 of the food network magazine in the Jan/Feb 2010 issue.

Dessert was a bowl of banana avocado icecream topped with agave nectar chocolate sauce!!!

Banana Avocado Ice Cream
3 frozen bananas
1/2 avocado
1 dash of organic vanilla extract
3 soaked dates

Process in food processor until smooth and creamy. Serve in a small beautiful china bowl and top with agave nectar chocolate syrup... (make this by swirling two tablespoons agave nectar in a small bowl with a nice big dash of dark organic cocoa, thin with a teeny bit of water, swirl with spoon and drizzle over ice cream). AHHHHHH!!! SOOO GOOD!! and so good for you! ;)

Weee! Xoxox <3>Udo

Get ready to raw and roll!

Woo! Get ready to Raw and Roll! In the middle of my LOST Season 5 marathon with my darling hub-bub, I decided to branch off Udo Umami into other areas of interest... check out the latest blog addition to the Udo family: UdoUncooked.

Ok- so it's not just a blog dedicated to raw foods, nor is it a blog strictly about vegan or vegetarian related topics... but it IS a fun new blog about all things healthy, vital, and full of nutrients! Stop by the Udo Umami sister blog for great recipes and products that feature health and wellness. It's sprouted grains, it's grass-fed beef, free range chicken, and breads and soups that are all chockful of vital, life-giving nutrients. Mmm! It's UdoUncooked!

Enjoy!
XoxoX <3>Udo

30 savory soups~

WOw! Check out this great resource for making 30 savory soups in no time! So delicious and fun! Don't you just love soup in the winter months? It's a great way to stay healthy, warm, and low cal! Enjoy! XOxox <3>Udo

Handbook for 2010

Passed along from an email... Love it!

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy
5. Make time to pray.
6. Play more games
7. Read more books than you did in 2009 .
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:
11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't over do. Keep your limits.
14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
16. Dream more while you are awake
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more.
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree...

Society:
25. Call your family often.
26. Each day give something good to others.
27. Forgive everyone for everything..
28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
30. What other people think of you is none of your business.
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:
32. Do the right thing!
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
34. GOD heals everything.
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
37. The best is yet to come..
38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.
39. Your Inner 'most' is always happy. So, be happy.

Here's to 2010... the BEST YEAR EVER!!!! Weeee!

Enjoy!

Xoxoxoxox <3>Udo