Dreaming of Tara
As I sit here typing this post, I am watching one of my favorite films of all time: Gone with the Wind. While the movie is certainly captivating, it is the book that first lured me into its world of romance and Southern pleasantries. I read it for the first time (yes, I have read the 1000+ pages multiple times!) in eighth grade. I immediately became absorbed in Tara and its inhabitants, so much so that I bawled when I reached the last page. Not only was I completely heart-broken about the not so “happily-ever-after” ending, but I was left with the feeling of “What do I do now?!” Nonetheless, my infatuation with Margaret Mitchell’s masterpiece has continued ever since. Interestingly, I actually wrote a paper for a film class a few semesters back discussing the cultural implications of food within Gone with the Wind. If there is such a thing as an enjoyable paper-writing experience, that certainly was; it combined my favorite things–film, literature, and food! Have you ever had a similar experience with a particular book? What was the first book with which you became emotionally or intellectually immersed?
Now that I’ve revealed myself as a total book nerd, let’s get onto the food:
Wednesday
Due to my recent Nutiva fixation, I’ve been neglecting an old favorite–Living Harvest Vanilla Spice Hemp Protein. Although this smoothie was pretty fantastic, my favorite way to enjoy it is with frozen mango:)
peach-blueberry smoothie with soymilk, vanilla spice hemp, & Vanilla Almond granola
Thursday
The Starbucks-inspired series of oats continues. I served it in a ginormous coffee mug, of course.
oat bran cooked in banana, almond milk, coffee, & dark cocoa, topped with cocoa almonds
Have you ever noticed how few ingredients are in Triscuits? I picked up these Thin Crisps the other day and was delighted to find a short ingredients list. Although I would prefer that they were made with canola or another healthy oil, these Thin Crisps are pretty natural, and tasty too. They made the perfect accompaniment to my random salad combination at lunch today.
Triscuit Thin Crisps
shockingly short ingredients list
carrot-sunflower salad with white beans & dried cranberries; Thin Crisps; cherries
dressed in rice wine vinegar, agave nectar, & ginger
I looked to Rachael’s 2, 4, 6, 8 cookbook for dinner inspiration. Amazingly, I actually followed the recipe pretty closely–it was delicious! Any dish with cumin and turmeric is likely to please my palate.
Indian-Spiced Chickpea-Tomato Soup with yogurt; Ak Maks; salad with mango-lemongrass dressing; yogurt with orange segments
Off to hang with Scarlett and Rhett. Later!
PS Don’t forget to enter the Chobani giveaway before tomorrow at 12 PM (CST)!
Filed under: Meals
Hello and welcome! I have created this blog for people who love food, especially healthful, vegetarian food.
I currently attend college in North Carolina, where I am studying English and psychology, although I plan on pursuing an additional degree in nutrition after I graduate. Ideally, I would like to combine my love of food and the written word someday as a health writer.
I am easily wrapped up in Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. Peter Pan and anything by Roald Dahl when I was little.
Mm Starbucks oats… the best ones I’ve made are Starbucks Ice Cream Swiss Oats (tastes just like it!) and coffee oats with coconut milk, like a coconutty latte. Give it a try sometime
who knew that triscuits had such few items. wow. you are a life saver! thats awesome. oh and that white bean cranberry salad sounds DELISH im going to have to try that.
TFFRRDLSD
(That Figure Friendly Rachael Ray Dinner Looks Surprisingly Delicious)
Heu hey Caroline!!
It’s been some time since I’ve written but here’s AGNES…I used to write a blog AGNES’ WORLD OF VEGAN PLEASURES…do you remember me…?? =PP
Well,but life has changed a lot since that time so…I created a NEW BLOGGY!!!
=))
I’d be really glad to see your comments there =DDD Appreciate it!! =))
Hope you’re doing well!!
Mmmmm….I’m jealous ,you still have those lovely cherries….yummmm…..
A movie that touched my emotions..all bout Second World War..like Pianist….
Well,hope to hear from you soon =))
ENJOY YOUR TiME!!!!
Agnes
ohhhh and my new blog is here =) :
http://www.agnesworldoffruitypleasures.wordpress.com
Hope to see you there sometime…!! =) HUG
can i snag the recipe to that soup somewhere? or is it just in the book? i really want to make it! looks so good! love cocoa almonds, i have never put them in oats though. clever.
the first book and film that made me think about my life in general way was The Hours by Nicole Kidman. After I finished the movie, i couldn’t get it out of my mind for a week, then I bought a book and hooked up for another two weeks.
I’m reading the book “Confederates in the Attic” right now, and just finished a chapter on Gone with the Wind and its allure. I’ve actually never read it/seen it- it’s a totally foreign subject to me… I don’t know jack about southern culture so maybe I should give it a shot!
I’m totally into twilight right now…I tried to avoid it, thought I would hate it, I’m already on second read on a few of the books!!!! How yummy does that bowl of Indian-Spiced Chickpea-Tomato Soup look? I could eat chickpeas at every meal. Very cute starbucks oats- love them in the coffee cup!! Have a fabulous weekend
It’s funny you bring up the Triscuits because my latest obsession are the “Triscuits with a Hint of Salt.” My biggest cracker gripe is the sodium, but the ingredient list on these is super short and the sodium is low, despite a rather salty kick.
Cheers to Triscuits!
I loved Gone with the Wind, too! It was my favorite book. I cried for hours when I finished it–not only because I was so frustrated at Scarlett, but because the book was done!
I actually bought Gone with the Wind last year and never read it and totally forgot I had it! Maybe I’ll go look for it later. The one book I remember really captivating me when I was little was Indian Captive. It was based on a true story about a girl who got captured by native americans and eventually ended up choosing to stay with them. It seemed like a really long book back then but it was probably only a few hundred pages! Also, I got to write a 12 page paper on Harry Potter in college once and it was definitely my most enjoyable paper writing experience!
What a lovely bowl of oat bran! It looks gorgeous.
Eh, it’s nowhere near the intellectual level of your choice but when I was eleven I was obsessed with Harry Potter and although I didn’t invest much emotion in it, I certainly wasted enough time reading the things…then I matured a little, read more widely and realised how many people were plagiarized by its author. I loathe them now.
Emotional energy came later, and it was ‘The Shining’ which really made my heart race: I really felt like I was channelling the atmosphere of the book and truly cared about the characters ~ at certain points I actually jumped or shuddered, still sitting in my comfy chair. No book or film (horror-wise) has ever done that to me, and it’s still my favourite novel…probably always will be.
Whoa, I can’t believe my eyes when I read that Triscuts list!
Your bucks inspired oats sound absolutely perfect to me! I’m echoing Sarah but that RR dinner looks and sounds FANTASTIC!!
I’ve never seen Gone with the Wind – is that crazy?!
all your eats are FANTASTIC. esp that moroccan soup thang – mmmmm…one of my fave cuisines! sooo glad i found your bloggyland…thanks for the comment and i def look forward to reading more!
I read the Pigman in like 7th grade and cried so much, I read all of the author’s other books
No book has made me cry since then!
When I was a kid my Mom had an ugly velvet bath robe. I use to pretend it was the dress made from the curtains at Tara!! LOL! Also, any book that has a series I can easily get addicted and emotionally attached to. I get so comfortable with knowing there’s ANOTHER book coming…. then I get all depressed when I reach the end
Glad to hear other people do the same thing.
-A
Oh Caroline, you make me wanna read Gone with the Wind, hrmmmm what a great way to procrastinate! One of my fav novel is Anne of Green Gables … so good, I love it
impressive triscuits, but i want that chickpea soup!
http://cardiovegsular.wordpress.com
I cried reading ‘The Outsiders’, like hardcore. That was back in…7th grade I think?
I think I get emotionally immersed into every single book I read. I always feel like the main character, and get thrown off if someone interrupts me
I just had triscuits the other day and they were yummy! I didn’t know that the ingredient list was that short though—now I’ll go get some more!
Rachael’s Indian soup recipe sounds fab!!
sorry for being SO late in the commenting! Hmmm emotionally charged books…I would prob say the Kite Runner. I absolutely adore that book and it ws certainly one of those reads where you just didnt want to put the book down.
triscuits are hands down my parents favorite cracker ever! We have more boxes than you could possible imagine! haha
1000+ pages gives you ample time to become immersed in a book! The passion you describe it with makes me wonder if I would enjoy that book too… But I definitely know what you mean about becoming emotionally/intellectually involved with a book. When a new Harry Potter book would come out, I would spend the majority of a few days reading one…and living, breathing Harry Potter and his friends. It is a shock and also overwhelming sad when that kind of book ends! I recently read a coffee book that I similarly fell in love with — God in a Cup. This now reminds me I am behind in my VegNews reading — a few issues behind, in fact.
Anyway, how wonderful is your oats combo?! Chocolate, almonds, coffee, banana?! Add coconut, and those are my favorite five flavors ever — be they combined in oatmeal or in ice cream. Oh, and have you tried Sunspire’s dark chocolate cocoa dusted almonds? They aren’t listed on the Sunspire website because they are a bulk item. Whole Foods as well as little local natural foods stores tend to carry them in their bulk section, but they are heavenly and I really think you would enjoy them! And I am still darn jealous of your vanilla spice hemp protein. I want it badly but feel awful spending my summer wages on something I know is a luxury food item and totally not necessary…but it sounds sooooooo yummy in your smoothie/shake combinations, always!