Happy weekend, finally! It’s been a long week at work and being on call after hours while adjusting to Skipper’s new insulin shot schedule twice a day. Yesterday I was feeling tired and cranky most of the day. It was hot and the air quality here was pretty smokey from a nearby wildfire, so I decided against and outdoor run and headed to the gym to use a treadmill. I planned on 5+ miles, but ended up only doing 3.4 because my energy level hit a wall. I guess the stressful week, heat, lack-of-sleep, and crappy air-quality came together for a crappy run. We did finally make it to Trader Joe’s yesterday to restock the kitchen and with hubby stashing goodies into the cart that looked good and me restocking some of our nuts, I ended up with a $125 bill – impressive for Trader Joe’s!
Skipper is hanging in there, I think he’s gained a little weight which is great. But we’ve also been noticing his vision issues as he’s been bumping into walls more the last few days.
And looking a little disoriented more.
At first I thought it might be because he’s getting too much insulin, but adjusting the amounts and giving him food to re-stabilize his blood sugar is not helping and it seems to be other age-related complications since the vet says he’s at least 12-years-old and could be a lot older. He’s still a sweetheart and seems to be very happy to spend time with us and eat, so we’re gonna take it day by day making sure he’s having a good quality of life.
Even though it was hot and smokey outside yesterday, for some reason I was craving something hot for dinner. Crazy, I know. I grabbed two of my favorite ingredients from the pantry to create a quick, one-pot meal using dill and lemon pepper for a summery twist.
Lemon Dill Lentils and Quinoa
- 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 1/2 green lentils, rinsed
- 1 medium onions, chopped
- 4 cups of water
- 1 tbsp. dill weed
- 1 tsp. lemon pepper seasoning
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 cup of chopped broccoli or veggie blend of preference
- 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
Bring water, onion, lentils, and quinoa to a boil in a medium soup pot. Reduce heat to a high simmer, and stir in dill weed, lemon pepper seasoning, salt, broccoli, nutritional yeast, and apple cider vinegar. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes stirring occasionally. Serve and enjoy. Makes 4 servings.
Raw broccoli is still tough for me to enjoy, it needs to be blended with a balance of flavors to make it less harsh to digest, this soup is my favorite way to enjoy it raw currently. But I also like simmering it with quinoa dishes since it breaks up the texture nicely without cooking it into mush.
The end result came out very tasty with a tangy and bright dill flavor blended with the lemon pepper.
The nutritional yeast added a nice creaminess and “cheesy” flavor which paired nicely with the broccoli. And this dish can be made ahead of time and froze in individual servings for a healthy emergency meal.
Stopping by to see how Skipper was doing! And you guys, of course! Sorry to hear his sight is getting more questionable. I think that is going to start happening with our Suzie! I do understand what you mean about making him comfortable when and while you can. Our Suzie has ‘lumps’ that don’t seem to be bothersome to her but we are keeping an eye on them and have been in contact with 2 vets about them. The ones that are on her joints we are going to remove but if we were to remove ‘all of them’ it would be awful because there are so many. If the vets don’t think they are causing problems or pain that is certainly what we are gong to focus on. If they are ‘just there’ and she can live with them not bothering her we can, too. She’s so full of ‘piss and vinegar’ still I would hate for her to go in for a surgery to remove a dozen lumps throughout her body, ya know!? She’s getting up there in age, too…I think she’s roughly 13 now.
On the food note…that looks scrumptious! YUM! LOVE the flavor combo! Looks like a great comfort food, too!
Hope you feel better! I definitely have those days too when it seems like I try to get things done but just don’t have the energy. Your lemon dill lentil qunioa dish looks so yummy!