Seems like winter didn’t want to leave un-noticed and decided to stay for part of spring. My wool sweaters finally made it out of the closet and it feels nice to snuggle in them. I was actually missing the cold weather…I cannot believe I just said that…but it is true. I like going back to my home in Uruguay during their summer (US winter) so I skip a good chunk of the coldest San Diego days. We are hoping for some rain this weekend,  we need it desperately.  With that in mind and in a complete cozy cold weather mood I prepared a super easy and nutrient packed mushroom casserole.

Be aware, this is not the kind of recipe you can rush so don’t do it when you are already hungry. Set up some nice tunes and enjoy the process!

This is what you’ll need:

– 1 Cup of Brown Rice

– 1 Butternut Squash

–  1 small box of Crimmini Mushrooms

– 1 big leek

– Nutmeg

– Black Pepper

– Parsley to garnish

– Nutricional Yeast

– Garlic powder

– Olive oil

Gadgets:

–  Food Processor or Blender

–  13×9 aprox. backing dish

1- Rinse and prepare the brown rice. You’ll wanna start with this step because it is the one that will take the longest. Brown rice tends to take 35- 45 minutes to cook. I usually prepare huge batches of rice or other grain once a week so that I always have something handy when time or laziness get in the way.

2- Cut the butternut squash in pieces. You can choose to leave the skin or take it out. I usually take some and leave some. Steam or boil the butternut squash until it is tender and “blend-able”. After it’s soft, toss it in the blender or food processor. Add nutmeg, back pepper and salt and blend it all up. If you want a less “runny” consistency try doing the squash in the oven instead.

3- Chop the mushrooms, the leeks and the parsley. (You can do this while the squash is being steamed)

4- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Oil the backing dish. Toss the brown rice in the backing dish and spread a single layer. Toss the leeks and spread a single layer. Toss the mushrooms and spread a single layer. Sprinkle some salt. Sprinkle some nutritional yeast (I put a lot of this). Sprinkle some garlic powder. Toss the butternut squash paste and spread a single layer. All done and ready for the oven.

If you want to preserve some of the moisture cover the dish with tin foil.

Almost there! Bake for 35-45 minutes.

I try to stay away from cheese but if you are a cheese lover make sure to add some as a topping 5 minutes before you take out the dish. I usually make half of the casserole vegan and the other half real cheesy for Alex, no reason why we can’t both have what we want.

Be patient and let it cool for aprox. 10 minutes.

Hope this recipe warms up your chilly days!

Mucho Amor,

Quick note about the pictures: It was actually really hard to make this look good. I used natural day light for some and artificial for others, can you tell the difference? Would love to know your opinion!

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Hands up if you love a free texture to add an extra layer to your images! Yep, I’m one of those people. And now it’s me the one creating a free texture set of images. I figure I need to keep good karma rolling.

Adding a layer of texture after the composite is all done is my final step to finishing an image. I do not use textures in ALL of my composites but I do use them quite a bit.

Sometimes I create my textures by painting paper but I also love going on texture hunts. This set is all about rusty surfaces. Living two blocks from the ocean I see a lot of these. Rusty surfaces are always great to add as a texture layer because of the intricate mix of colors and shapes.

Here are some examples of what you’ll find inside:

I hope you like this free “Rusty” texture set and that they add an extra somethin’ somethin’ to your images 😉

You can DOWNLOAD THE SET HERE.

Mucho Amor,

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I arrived to the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden when the light was just sneaking in, adding color to a million flowers. The birds and bugs started to wake up slowly. I was the only one there with it all.

I was there at the crack of dawn to photograph the meadow while in full bloom. The meadow was restored by Susan Van Atta. As a pioneer in sustainable landscape architecture she creates spaces that are breathtaking. The best part is that we are not the only ones who benefit from this habitat, the plants and animals do too. All the plants and flowers you’ll see below are native from California. There were also lizards, quails and all kids of birds and butterflies, but those a harder to snap.

When photographing these expansive spaces timing is key so I’m always the first one to arrive and the last one to go.  There is nothing not to like about walking around a gorgeous garden snapping at flowers, trying to get that bee and trying to get the background mountains under the best light.

It is very inspiring and motivating to see creative work literally blooming and thriving.

I hope you enjoy these photos as I much as I enjoyed taking them.

Mucho Amor,

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