Perfect Design Day 4: A Perfect Weekend & Oscar Worthy Snacks

It's been a glorious weekend for the Mistress and her Man. We went out to a romantic dinner Friday night and took the dogs on long walks in the beautiful spring-like weather. In the nearly 4 years we've been together, I don't think I've ever felt so in love! He is truly my PERSON in this life. The last couple weekends, he's been working on various artistic/creative projects and I've been cooking up a storm...There's nothing sexier to me than when I'm coming up with a creation in the kitchen and I look over and see him designing some bad ass piece of leather-- or rebuilding an antique fan, like he was this weekend. He is so exquisitely talented, it's insane.

I took my "workout break day" yesterday and then today I rocked out 80 minutes of hard-core Tracy! Perfect Design and a cardio rebounder workout-- all outside since it was so gorgeous!

I've got the Oscar Pre-Show on as I'm typing this and getting ready to put out my delish hummus and homemade pita bread. The pita is not gluten-free, but I'm going to dip some carrot sticks instead.

Here are the recipes-- they are soooo easy! JP and I both love spicy stuff, so you can omit the jalapeño and the habanero peppers if you're not a fan of heat. It's not overly hot, just the perfect kick!

HOLY DELICIOUS HUMMUS

2 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained

1/3 cup tahini

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

4 cloves fresh garlic

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 pinch paprika

1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley

1/2 jalapeno pepper with seeds

1 small habanero pepper with seeds

Combine in a food processor. Add additional oil and salt for desired taste and consistency.

PARKER'S PITA BREAD

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

1 tablespoon of sugar

1/2 cup of warm water

4 cups of bread flour

2 teaspoons of salt

1 cup of warm water

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Preparation:

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in 1/2 cup of warm water and set aside, covered, for 15 minutes. Dissolve salt in the remaining 1 cup of warm water.

In a large mixing bowl, add flour and make a well in the center. Add yeast mixture and salt water. Knead with hands for 10 minutes in the bowl. Add olive oil and continue to knead until all oil is absorbed. Shape into a ball in the bowl, cover, and place in a warm area to rise until doubled in volume, approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Punch down the dough and knead for 5 minutes more.

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C), and lightly oil baking sheets.

Take pieces of dough slightly larger than an egg and roll out on a floured surface to a thickness of 3/8 to 1/4 inch. (For larger or smaller pita bread pieces, take more or less dough). Prick the bread with a fork in several places.

Place on baking sheets and bake at 350°F (175°C) on the lowest oven rack for 2-3 minutes, then turn the pitas over and bake for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from oven and saute in a frying pan with 1 Tb of olive oil until lightly browned. When thoroughly cooled, pitas can be stored in plastic bags in the refrigerator, or frozen.

Before using, brown in a lightly oiled frying pan for a few minutes until browned on both sides.

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OK, Lovelies-- I am really going to be focusing on diet this week. I'm doing so well with my workouts, I simply must not sabotage my efforts by eating crap. I'm going to try drinking more water and bringing snacks with me-- so I don't get tempted by the Snack Drawer!

xxoo