Crash and burn

Not long after completing my last post, I made a major error that almost made it my final entry.

You see, I'm not as knowledgeable about computers as my hubby (well duh, he does that stuff for a living). So, while surfing the Web, I accidentally picked up a virus, and to top it all off, I made it worse by trying to fix the situation by myself (he was not home at the time).

I quickly found that I was no match for this bug, so I called my man for some help. He talked me through the first couple steps, but left the rest for when he got home.

Unfortunately, by this time, the wormy parasite had dug its way through most of our files and embedded itself deep within the system. We were in danger of losing everything, including photo/video memories (like the ones you see on this blog).

Matthew did his best to back up as much as he could onto an external hard drive, before it was lost for good (I've been telling him we should have done that a long time ago). Then, he wiped out that pest, along with everything in its path, and started out from scratch.

After the havoc I caused, I'm surprised I'm allowed back on the computer again. I'll just have to be more careful in the future.

For your photo viewing pleasure, I posted a few salvaged pics. They're all salads, despite the fact that they are all missing one ingredient.

Now, most people think a salad by definition has to have lettuce, but none of these use the familiar leafy greens as a base. They were all made during my eat local week, when I was having trouble finding greens at the local farmers market and roadside stands (okay, so I cheated a bit to keep my green smoothies).

First up, is the fresh parsley-based Mediterranean Tabouli from Matt Amsden's Rawvolution. I added some cucumber and mint to the original recipe of parsley (of course), cherry tomatoes, onion, hemp seeds (you can sub sesame seeds or ground cauliflower), lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and sea salt.

Next is a simple salad, using sprouts in place of the traditional lettuce. It also has carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and corn.

Lastly, one of my favorite dishes for highlighting local produce is a mix of chopped zucchini, yellow squash, green pepper, heirloom tomatoes, corn kernels, fresh basil, garlic, oregano, balsamic vinegar, EVOO, sea salt and pepper. It's so easy and delicious, too.

As always, enjoy!