recipes

Fun with lettering by Esther Loopstra

The more that I get into my 100 day project of sketching food and lettering on Instagram, the more I am blown away by how doing something so very simple like drawing food and practicing lettering is changing and invigorating my illustration. I tell my students that drawing in your sketchbook every day is a good way to refine your style and get new ideas and this is proof! Simply having to come up with different ways of seeing and creating something new every day is helping me to think outside the box and I can see my hand lettering taking on a whole new life. 

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Tempeh Fajitas! by Esther Loopstra

I'm not sure why, or when it started, but we have a tradition in my house of having tempeh fajitas on Friday nights. This tasty meal has also improved since aquiring a cast iron skillet! It's an easy, vegetarian and vegan option when you don't want to cook much. I just brown the tempeh and then set it aside while I cook saute the onions, peppers and tomatoes. I add the tempeh back in and then add some seasoning (usually salt, paprika, garlic salt and cayenne pepper). Serve it with tortillas and any toppings you want! 

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From the sketchbook - Curried Fish and Veggies by Esther Loopstra

I like to try to eat fish about 2-3 times a week because I don't eat a lot of other meat, it can be a great source of healthy protein and fat. But fish can be expensive and sometimes I'm just not great at cooking white fish. So, I've come up with a solution which makes for a really easy one pot meal. Buy frozen fish (I get mine at Costco) and defrost it. Then, chop up a bunch of veggies with coconut milk and curry powder and place them in the oven at about 350 degrees until they are almost done. Then, place the defrosted fish on top and cover it with the sauce and cook for a bit more, until the fish is done! It's a versatile dish that can help you use up whatever veggies are in your fridge.

From the Sketchbook - Spaghetti Squash Stirfry by Esther Loopstra

I love me some Spaghetti Squash!! In the past few years I've found out that my body hates processed carbs :( So, I do a sort of modified low carb diet. Since I usually try to avoid as many carbs as I can during the week, my favorite new find has been Spaghetti Squash.

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New sketchbook project - Stuffed Delicata Squash by Esther Loopstra

I’ve started my goals for the new year a bit early this year. One of them is writing more in my blog (check!) Along with that I’ve been working on sketching daily in my sketchbook as sort of a journal (I will talk more about this in a later post). I got an idea of a “project” to commit myself and to stay on track. So, I’m going to visually journal what I eat. Hopefully every day.

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