MY BEAN BURGER RECIPE

I worked on this recipe last week and perfected it to my taste. Renee (http://reneesilvana.blogspot.com) asked me to share it with everyone, so here it is...

Bean Burgers

Ingredients

1 Can of beans (The choice of beans is yours)
1 Onion
1 Large carrot
1 Pepper
½ tin of Sweet Corn (optional)
1 tsp of Garlic
½ Cup of pulsed oats
1 Egg (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
30 ml Olive oil

Method

Throw oil into a pan. Add the chopped onion, finely grated carrot and chopped pepper. Fry together till onion is soft. Add the garlic and the salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Throw the oats into a blender and pulse. Remove oats and put to the side. Drain the beans and toss them into the blender. Pulse till smooth. Throw the smooth mix into a bowl. Add the cooled onion, carrot and pepper mix. Also add the oats. Mix together.

Taste for seasoning. You can add more salt and pepper if you need to. Add the egg and mix thoroughly.

All that is left to do is to shape them into burgers.

I also use this recipe for my vegetarian cottage pie and vegetarian meatballs as well. I personally like the taste because it has clean flavors and simple seasonings of salt and pepper. Feel free to jazz it up anyway you like.

COOKING TOO? WHAT'S NEXT?

A few weeks ago I started exercising regularly and yesterday I spent two and half hours in the kitchen perfecting my own veggie burger recipe. Now I must admit, I can't really cook so me spending that much time in the kitchen is weird. But I created the perfect veggie burger to replace all those soy products, which I am allergic to. The secret to a great veggie burger is using rolled oats instead of breadcrumbs and getting the seasoning just right, which I did, finally.

Lately I keep surprising myself because yesterday I finished two chapters of the work in progress I told myself I wasn't going to write about any more. So I never know what I am going to be up to next and that is kinda fun.

Also, I applied for a job at a local media business who is looking for freelance writers. You have to write 150 word paragraphs about random topics, which I think I can do. I just hope it is a legitimate thing because there are a lot of people trying to scam freelance writers. That goes for locally and internationally, so be aware.

On another note, I am going to spend most of the day sending out more query letters.

UPDATE YOUR BROWSER

I have been having a problem reading some of your blogs lately and because I am addicted to your blogs (I might not always comment but I do read them) I went in search of a way to fix this problem myself.

What did I come up with? I switched my normal Google browser to Google chrome. Since doing that my problem has been solved and there is not a blog out there that I can't read. If anyone else is having the same problem, then your browser just needs to be updated.

YAY! I GOT MAIL

I decided to put my current work in progress on hold for a while. Mentally I am just not focused concerning this one and will complete another, older work in progress instead.

Got a few more rejection letters and I must say, I have never been so happy to get query responses, even if it is rejections. At least now all I read is "We are not taking on new clients at this time," Instead of "Your project is just not right for this agency."

Talking about queries. I have a specific binder in which I put all my printed out email rejections. I keep it in view when I write. I don't know why. Maybe I just like torturing myself. I didn't even intend to keep any of my rejections but now I can't seem to part with them.

What have you guys been up to these days?

CHECKING IN

Creepy guy was at my house again this morning. Thankfully my mom was home and she told me she would take care of it this time. The creep rather left in a hurry when he noticed that I didn't answer the door this time. Thank goodness.

My mom and I are renovating our living room and let me tell you it was difficult picking up the almost 17 year old carpet, thanks to the carpet installers who had nailed down the carpet into the wooden floors. We have come halfway so far which is a relief.

I am also currently a little stuck on my current work in progress. I am 50 000 words in and now I am just stuck. Why? Because without me realising it this book is a lot more serious than my other work and I had not intended it to be at all. Now I am wondering if I really want to finish this book or just press delete and start over again.

I found a few more agents I can query, thanks to the 2011 Writers Market Book. Haven't heard back from the other agents yet, but it has been two weeks. So I am just going to keep querying agents till someone requests more material or something. I am seriously considering deleting the first two chapters of my book and rewriting the third chapter so that the novel can start with it instead. Right now my first chapter is letting me down with the querying I think. Because I don't think my query letter is that bad...but maybe I will post it on my blog and you guys can tell me if it scares you off too.

SOMETIMES INSPIRATION IS JUST SCARY!

I am always in favor of inspiration and the wonderful ways it affects my life. Although lately I have been having second thoughts.

I am an aspiring romance writer and my favorite sub-genre would be paranormal romance. So naturally I relish any opportunity to use life’s experiences as an idea for a scene. All the emotional experiences I pick up along the way are useful too of course.

But a few days ago I was struck with a situation I do not ever want to be placed in again. There is a man who walks around in my neighborhood who is well known for coming onto your private property to unlawfully lay claim upon your possessions. Well, not only that but he is just creepy. He pretends to be crazy but I don’t think he is. He is just shifty.

Anyway, while I was alone on Thursday he came to my house. He was demanding I give him something to eat and when I refused (because if I do he just keeps coming back everyday) he kept bringing up something else and then something else, just to keep me outdoors and talking to him while his eyes roamed over my fully dressed body. I felt so vulnerable and so violated by the way he was staring at me. Something about him just screams danger. Anyway after asking him to leave numerous times and after the dogs were tired of barking at him, he finally left.

Even though he was gone I did not feel relieved. Because this was not the first time he showed up at my house. The last time I was in the street and he just approached me and started telling me how good I looked and before I knew it he was right there next to me, almost taking hold of me. Luckily I rushed behind my gate and I locked it before he could follow me in.

He always just shows up and refuses to leave. The police don’t really arrest him because I always see him prowling the neighborhood again soon, even though he behaves like a criminal. I have this fear that one day I will run into him when I am out and about and alone or that he might break into the house while I am alone or something and I don’t even want to think about what could happen if he does.

Maybe I am just being paranoid. All I know is that I don’t like feeling like a victim or like prey. This kind of fear is intolerable. I suppose I could use it to describe how defenseless a human feels in the presence of an immortal, but using him and his horrid creepiness as inspiration…would just taint my novel. I would not dare give him that much credit.

I am mean I know, but I don’t like it when someone makes me uncomfortable or scares me to the point that I am afraid to stick my head out of the front door.

OK...REALY?

Never thought I would say this but exercise is really important for me, as a writer, to relax and keep fit. Because I usually just sit on my butt and not do much when writing, I have been feeling a bit rundown lately and I noticed that when I get in a workout somewhere in the day I write better and somehow feel more focused.

Me…saying I like exercise? What is happening to the world?

And a little tip for people who might also recently have started on a vegetarian diet or have adapted to a new vegetarian lifestyle…Please make sure you are not allergic to soy before spending a lot of money restocking your refrigerator with soy products and only finding out later that you are actually allergic to it. True story…