The Last Centurion - Spiralized Garlic-Paprika Sweet Potato "Fries" (link)

If I didn't know better, I'd swear I had the flu. And I never get the flu. But every muscle aches, and creeping out of bed was not a pretty sight. But I managed it, and also managed to play with my spiralizer while preparing a salad for Cory. A carrot, a radish, a shallot. Such pretty edible tendrils. And yes, those tomatoes are all from my garden.

I woke, as I almost always do, to the sight of The Last Centurion, guarding me from ... well, whatever. Romeo Lee Rothfeld, AKA Puppy, spends his days guarding me.

For my little man, it's all about Keeping Mommy Safe. He has certain spots in each room, from where he watches out for anyone or anything that might bring harm to Mommy. He barks like mad when Cory comes close to me, regardless of how many times we tell him that Cory is as safe as can be. If someone happens to walk towards me or near me, Romeo rushes over to my side.  Because I can't get out of bed at the same reasonable hour as Robert, Romeo will often forego his morning treats to stay with me. Even if he does follow Rob downstairs for treats, he runs right back upstairs to stay with me. 

Romeo has abandonment issues. He lost his first human mommy to cancer, and lost his puppy sister when she was adopted by a different family. Just like a little human, these experiences marked him for life. Not only does he watch over me, he is also very protective of his "new" sister, Chelsea.

Doggies. God's gift to the human race.

Finished my latest flower mandala, already started a new picture. 

I have a new coloring book on the way and I am very excited about it. Actually Robert got it for me, putting it on preorder.                

Gathering all my blue pencils in anticipation ...

I decided to play with the spiralizer again, before I call it a day and send this off to the publisher. This recipe for Spiralized Garlic-Paprika Sweet Potatoes is also from the "Inspiralized" website. I ramped up the seasoning with McCormick's California Style Garlic Pepper (instead of the plain garlic) and the addition of some sugar. Just plain old white sugar, nothing to overwhelm the other savory flavors.

These have a good taste, but I need to practice my spiralizing.  I've got at least 3 different widths from the same blade, which makes separating the strands a bit dicey, and messes with the cooking time. I'm not sure I'm crazy about the whole shoestring thing (which I might like better if my spiralization skills were up to snuff) so next time I will probably work with the medium blade instead.

Definitely medium blade next time. Okay, these are ridiculously good, although they remind me of French's French Fried Onions (which I love) rather than shoestring potatoes.

I bet these would be glorious on top of a casserole. For now, stick a fork in me, I am done, really overdone. I sat next to the oven while these were baking so I didn't have to walk back and forth, but my back still hurts and I feel like I ran a half-marathon. Ha ha ha ... me running a marathon ...

Today is Martin Luther King Day, a good day to reflect on the lessons of Dr. King.

Peace.