This root vegetable hash is nice on cold mornings, or when you need a lot of energy to get through the day.
Cold Sesame Peanut Noodle Salad
Loosely based on The Kitchn’s Cold Peanut Sesame Noodles with Chicken, this is one of our favorite warm weather meals. It keeps well in the fridge for a few days, and can easily be doubled or tripled for pot lucks. Ingredients For the noodles: 1/2 package rice noodles 2 cups shredded cabbage 1 cup shredded carrots 1 large cucumber, cut into match sticks 2 tbsp sesame seeds For the sauce: 1/4 cup sesame oil (or other light oil) 1/4 cup peanut butter 1/4 cup rice vinegar 1/4 cup tamari, gluten-free soy sauce, or Bragg’s liquid aminos 2 tbsp minced ginger 1 clove garlic, minced 1/8 tsp white pepper 1 tbsp sriracha, red chili paste, or red pepper flakes, to taste Instructions Cook the noodles according to the package directions (usually 5-10 minutes in boiling water), drain, and add cabbage and carrots. Use an immersion blender to mix the sauce ingredients …
Cold Brew Coffee… and Tea?
A few years ago, we discovered the deliciousness of cold brew coffee. It’s surprisingly simple to make, tends to be less bitter than drip coffee, and takes up far less of our precious counter space. Before we committed to buying gadgets specifically for cold brewing coffee, we tried it the low-tech way: adding 1/8 cup to 1/4 cup coarsely ground beans to a one-quart mason jar with filtered water, and letting it steep in the fridge for 8-24 hours. We filtered it using a standard coffee filter or cheese cloth, which took a little while, and could be messy, but it did the job. So we upped our game by buying the right tool for the job: a mason jar infuser for cold brew coffee. After steeping for 8-24 hours (depending on laziness and caffeine needs), we remove the filter and start a new jar, so at any given time, …
Hanging Fruit and Vegetable Baskets
Counter space and storage are both premium commodities in an RV. Jen and I are vegan, gluten free, and prefer eating less processed foods, so we buy lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Storing fresh food is a real challenge in our small space. We are always looking for ways to improve. We wanted to add a hanging fruit basket over one of the prep counters on the kitchen slide. We found this 3-tier basket with an overhead hook. RV roof slides are typically built from insulating foam board sandwiched between two thin sheets of plywood with a metal frame for stability. The interior surface of our kitchen slide ceiling is only ¼ inch thick panel board with a durable wallpaper covering. Using an anchor for the hook would be a real challenge, and could damage the ceiling. Most in-wall anchors could not hold enough weight, or were unable to …
Tycho the Cat
We get questions about our cat harness, and after trying several that either didn’t fit or were easily escaped, we really like the Kitty Holster (Amazon Affiliate link) from Crazy K Farm (direct company link with tons of cool products). They come in a wide range of sizes and colors, including designs with reflective safety stripes. It took a little while for Tycho to get used to wearing his harness, but now he gets excited when he sees his “jacket” come out, and knows its time for a walk.
Installing an RV Slide Awning
One of the biggest fears that all RV owners have is water making its way into areas of the unit where is shouldn’t be. We did a lot of research on things to watch for and this was top of the list. Being in Arizona, we didn’t have many opportunities to watch for leaks: until monsoon season starts, when the rain comes fast and hard. When the first rains hit, rain water was dripping from the middle of the living/dining room slide. We set up the pots and pans to catch the water and started looking for the cause. It became clear pretty quick that the roof of this slide was sloping in all the wrong ways. Because there was no center support, the slide roof sagged toward the inside and middle. This allowed the rain water to puddle up and eventually overwhelm the multiple layers of seal protection. As …
Can I tow this?
When we decided to move into an RV, we spent a lot of time weighing the pros and cons of motorhomes vs. towables. We ultimately decided on a travel trailer (for reasons we’ll probably talk about in another post). We spent so much time learning the differences between GVWR and GCVWR, that we decided to write it all down. We created a small towing capacity calculator, Can I Tow This? to help us decide what we should tow and how we should tow it. We also used Trailer Life’s Tow Guides with comprehensive lists of towing capacities, since truck manufacturers aren’t especially consistent about publishing towing specifications.
Online on the Road
We’re grateful to Technomadia and their Mobile Internet Handbook for teaching us the basics of staying online beyond a “sticks and bricks” residence. Many people ask about our internet setup, so here’s a general rundown of how we stay online.
Sriracha Buffalo Cauliflower: Updated! Now with More Habanero!
(Updated October 13, 2019.) This is an easy way to cook a head of cauliflower on the grill, and the sauce is easy, too. We love this on the side with just about anything we’re grilling, or whenever we want a spicy snack. Ingredients For cauliflower: 1 head of cauliflower Oil (optional) Salt and pepper For buffalo sauce: 1/4 cup Earth Balance or other vegan butter substitute 1/4 cup sriracha or your favorite hot sauce (see notes below for our new fave!) Instructions Clean the cauliflower, remove extra leaves and the bulk of the core. Drizzle with oil if desired, add salt and pepper, and wrap with foil. Cook on hot grill for 30-35 minutes. In a small saucepan on low heat, melt the butter and whisk in sriracha, until blended. When the cauliflower is fork tender, cut off florets and cover with buffalo sauce. Serve with ranch dip or …
Chili Powder
Pre-mixed chili powder is easy to find at just about every grocery store, but it’s also pretty easy to make yourself. Plus you can give it your own custom flare based on preferences and needs. Mine has only a mild heat and the actual proportion of cumin in each batch varies depending on my mood. This will not quite fill an empty spice jar, but can easily be halved, doubled, or tripled and stored in a mason jar. Ingredients 4 tbsp ground ancho chile 2 tbsp cumin 1 tbsp cocoa powder 2 tsp oregano 1 tsp garlic powder 1/2 tsp ground coriander Instructions Mix in a small bowl or glass, and use a small funnel to pour into an empty spice jar. Notes If you like heat, replace any amount of ancho with chipotle or other ground chile. The ancho chili tends to be a pretty mild pepper, but you …