Feast or Famine

I'm either blogging up a storm or not at all for months on end. That's kind of how I roll in real life too...I'm currently trying to lose a few pounds, which of course makes me OBSESSED with food. The more I have to diet, the more compulsive I become in finding the very best recipes and freshest ingredients and how much of something I can eat for the most amount of food...well, you get the idea.

I've been stalking this blog Can You Stay for Dinner? for a few weeks and recently read her 400 calorie salad ideas. I loved the thought of throwing all your leftovers into a salad (in an organized fashion). Today for lunch I made myself a super yummy salad with lettuce (duh...), onions, black beans, corn, tortilla crisps, and light ranch. I understand this isn't exactly a salad revolution or anything but it was slightly more out of the box for me than my normal.

http://www.canyoustayfordinner.com/2011/12/14/how-to-make-a-delicious-400-calorie-salad/

Tonight for dinner, I made gazpacho. Our friend, Nate, used to make this often but we live 5000 miles away from him and for some reason I've had a mega craving for it lately. CRH isn't supposed to eat a lot of tomato stuff right now, so I had put it off for a little bit but I decided today was the day. I just blended it all (I may have slightly over-blended...live and learn) and gave Eve a taste. She spit it out, so that's my measure that it's yummy goodness and the best part is that it's only 39 calories...yes, 39. I'm having it with a grilled cheese.

Here's the recipe from Allrecipes!

Prep Time:
20 Min

Ready In:
2 Hrs 20 Min

Servings (Help)

USMetricCalculate

Original Recipe Yield 10 servings

Ingredients

• 4 cups tomato juice
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 green bell pepper, minced
• 1 cucumber, chopped
• 2 cups chopped tomatoes
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a blender or food processor, combine tomato juice, onion, bell pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, green onions, garlic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, tarragon, basil, parsley, sugar, salt, and pepper. Blend until well-combined but still slightly chunky. Chill at least 2 hours before serving.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving Calories: 39 | Total Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 0mg

Blue Potato Burrito

We have a new market around the corner called Waialua Fresh. It's like an indoor farmer's market only better! They are my new favorite place and I visit as often as possible. I'm also stalking, I mean following, them on Facebook and one day this week they posted a picture of blue potatoes. I've never heard of, much less eaten, a blue potato. Purple, red, gold...yes. Blue...never before. So, of course I had to have them!

Last night, I was feeling lazy and went to get a pizza at our new local pizzeria, Jerry's. While they made our dinner, I felt compelled to run across the parking lot to grab up some of those potatoes. This morning, CRH whipped up this yummy blue potato breakfast burrito with a side of blue potato home fries. It was pure yummy goodness! I can't tell you what all was in it because I didn't make it but the burrito had the potatoes, eggs, cheese, veggie sausage and the home fries had the potatoes, sweet peppers, onions, garlic, and cayenne. OMG, delicious! Isn't it a pretty plate?

Follow Through...Not So Much

If you know me at all, you know that I really suck at following through with stuff. This did not prove untrue in my recent foray into being vegetarian. Truthfully, I never made it past pescetarian and honestly, I just can't give up fish. I super, triple, over the top love seafood. Anyway, I went home for Thanksgiving and fell off the wagon...badly. I started eating any and all meat in mass quantities and realized that I'd missed it. And then, I started feeling badly about it again and remembered how gross it is and now I'm back onto select meat. In an attempt to remove as much meat as possible from the dinner diet, I have asked some friends for recipes and just purchased Mark Bitman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian book. It should arrive Monday or Tuesday!

In the interim, my childhood (and current!) friend Sara, who doesn't just dabble in being a vegetarian but actually IS one gave me the most amazing recipe that I'm going to share with you good people now (because she said I could). Her mother has been a vegetarian for a long time and in the 80s had a cookbook with this recipe in it. Sara has apparently loved it since then and makes it for her family. I made it last night and we all agreed that it has officially made it into the menu rotation around here. (Well, the adults agreed...Eve ate something less nutritional.)

I have no idea what to call this...Adzuki Yumminess seems appropriate.

Put 2Tbsp of olive oil in a large-ish pan on the stove. Dice a medium onion, dice a medium potato, and slice a medium zucchini and cook in the oil for 3-4 minutes. Then add a cup of adzuki beans. I used drained can, but you can use dried ones that you have soaked. I'm not the patient. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add 1 1/4 cup of good veggie stock (I made mine using a recipe on all recipes...my first stock ever!) and 2 whole cloves (to be removed later). Then add in 3Tbsp of tomato paste, 3Tbsp of red wine, and 3Tbsp of cognac (a mini bottle is more than enough) and bring to a boil. Simmer, covered for 20-30 minutes until thickened. I simmered for about 30 and then CRH decided he wanted crescent rolls with it, so it continued to simmer while those cooked. Season to taste with salt and pepper!!

This was FANTASTIC!! Thank you for the recipe, Sara!

Red Wine Diet

Recently, my friend Becky visited and brought with her a copy of OK magazine. I love to read those rags and they are great for fad diets from time to time. I’ve never been a fad diet girl. Well, I’ve done South Beach until I realized how toxic it was for me, but Weight Watchers has always been my thing because it’s sensible. It’s portion control, but still eating the things you enjoy. Anyway, I read this red wine diet and decided that I could totally rock this and it promises that you lose 5lbs in 2 days.

Here’s how it works from an eating standpoint. I’m including the link to what it recommends, but here’s what I ate since I no longer eat chicken and I refuse to add OJ and tonic to my wine.

http://www.free-fad-diets.com/red-wine-diet.html

Breakfast (Both Days)

I slice of whole wheat toast

I hard boiled egg (since I have no idea how to poach one)

1 cup of coffee (diet says black, but I can’t…I used Splenda and Silk Soy Creamer

I glass of red wine

Lunch (Day 1)

Salmon sashimi – (half a pack because I was in the sun and it started to get weird, so like 5 or 6 pcs)

2 glasses of red wine

1 cup coffee

Dinner (Day 1)

Grilled shrimp marinated in garlic, cayenne, paprika, lemon juice, and olive oil

Small Romaine lettuce salad with onions and pomegranate dressing

Rest of the bottle of wine

I was hungry at the end of Day 1, but it was a huge cutback in food for me. I resisted the urge and I lost 2lbs the first day.

Lunch (Day 2)

Sashimi – ahi (10 or 12pcs)

Diet Dr. Pepper b/c I was too hot for coffee

Glass of red wine (Only 1 b/c I had kids around to be responsible for)

Dinner (Day 2)

Crab legs – steamed w/out butter

Small Caesar salad (this was a total cheat, but yummy and satisfying)

Rest of the bottle of wine

I was not hungry at the end of Day 2 and I lost a total of 4.6lbs. This will be repeated again next weekend and the one after that. I will be maintaining through the week with Weight Watchers. For the curious, I added up my WW points for Day 2 and it was 26 of the 29 I can have.

Lasagna Cupcakes

First of all I have to start this post by saying that Eve and I are obsessed (and I do mean obsessed) with cupcakes and Cupcake Wars and the like. When I told her this was dinner, she was super psyched. She didn't realize that it wasn't going to be sugar goodness, but I have to say it was definitely yummy goodness in the mouth. I made CRH's without ricotta (since he did find the recipe and all) and of course I used Morning Star Farms veggie soy crumbles instead of ground meat, but the overall verdict was yum. Each cupcake is 7 points for WW, but I actually estimate less because I didn't use as much of the ingredients as it called for. The 7 points does factor in using MS Farms vs. ground beef, just FYI.
Here's the recipe compliments of tablespoon.com.

Ingredients
1 cup marinara sauce
3/4 pound ground beef
12 wonton wrappers
8 ounces shredded mozzarella
3 ounces Parmesan cheese
4 ounces Ricotta cheese
(optional) basil for garnish

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray.
2.Brown beef and season with salt and pepper. Drain.
3.Cut wonton wrappers into circle shapes using a biscuit cutter or using the top of a drinking glass. You can cut several at a time.
4.Reserve 6 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and 6 tablespoon mozzarella for the top of you cupcakes. Start layering your lasagna cupcakes. Begin with a wonton wrapper and press it into the bottom of each muffin tin. Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese, Ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Top with a little meat and marinara sauce. Use around 1-2 teaspoons of all the ingredients depending on your personal preference.
5.Repeat layers ending with marinara sauce. Top with reserved Parmesan and mozzarella cheese.
6.Bake for 18-20 minutes or until edges are brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. To remove use a knife to loosen the edges then pop each lasagna out.
7.Garnish with basil and serve.

Yummy in the Tummy Weekend Recipes

I’ve started Weight Watchers again. It’s a whole new system than the old Points that I was used too, so it’s taking some time. Plus it seems I’ve been eating double my allowed points each day, which would explain the weight gain! My new allotted points for the day is 29 with 40 something extra weekly points. When I did the plan before, I got like 20 points a day. I did well on it and eventually got to a point where I wasn’t hungry in between meals. I’m feeling pretty sure I can do it again.

This weekend I made White Bean and Shrimp burgers from Mark Bittman’s book. YUM! I initially made them a little too pureed, so I had to double the recipe and add in coarsely chopped shrimp and beans by hand. It is 8 points alone and then you have to add some mayo and a bun. Well, I guess you don’t have to, but we did! CRH made a yummy Miracle Whip mayo for it.


For dessert, I made this Blueberry Crisp from the same book. I loved it, but it was 10pts and I can never, ever have it again. Ok, well perhaps I could modify the recipe and have it again but that’s not one of my strong suits.


Last night, CRH made this salmon and mushroom pasta. I didn’t get a pic, but omg it was delicious and only 10pts too. It was seriously yummy!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
12 oz salmon fillet (skinless salmon fillet cut into 3/4 inch pieces)
3 large garlic cloves (chopped)
1/2 lb mushrooms (sliced)
5 green onions (chopped)
1 tomato (seeded diced)
1/3 cup dry white wine
3 tbsp capers (drained)
1/2 lb linguine (freshly cooked)
1/4 cup fresh dill (chopped fresh dill or 1 tablespoon dried dillweed)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice


Preparation Steps:
1. Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat
2. Season salmon with salt and pepper
3. Add to skillet; sauté until just cooked through, about 3 minutes
4. Using slotted spoon, transfer salmon to plate
5. Add garlic to same skillet; sauté 30 seconds
6. Add mushrooms; sauté 2 minutes
7. Add green onions, tomato, wine and capers; cook until mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes
8. Add linguine, dill, lemon juice and salmon and toss
9. Season with salt and pepper

Ode to Mark Bittman

Mark is the author of the beloved lima bean parmesan recipe in this house. He's written a ton of recipe books and I'm dying to try some more of his recipes. Last week, I took Eve to the library and to my complete surprise my tiny little Waialua library had his Food Matters cookbook. There may or may not have been a girly squeal emitted in the middle of the library as I snatched it off the shelf! I've poured over it this weekend and on Wednesday (pay day), I'm going to Costco and the grocery store and stock up on groceries to make pretty much all of the bookmarked recipes.

School is over for me until Tuesday, August 23rd. I get an almost 2 week break, so I'll try to do a much better job of cooking and posting. I think these recipes are going to be awesome!!

Farfelle with Tomato Goat Cheese Cream Sauce

I know I haven't blogged in eons. I haven't really cooked in eons. With Eve being gone this summer and my working and going to school for literal 14 hour days the past month, I haven't had time for much in the kitchen.

I dusted off my apron today and rocked it. I actually made this dish earlier in the summer and I loved it. I thought Eve might just possibly eat a few nibbles since it has peas and she loves peas (weird, huh?). CRH won't eat it because it has goat cheese. It's hard to please them both at the same time these days in the culinary world, but CRH closed tonight so he wasn't home.

I made dinner and placed it in front of her with some grapes while we watched Diary of A Wimpy Kid (loved that movie btw). She ate every single bite. I mean happy plate club. I was ecstatic! It's officially kid approved, well my kid approved. Eve has her mama's love of all things cheese. She and I love cheeses, but if your kid isn't a fan of goat cheese you can make a substitute listed in the recipe below. Enjoy!


Farfalle with Tomato-Goat Cheese Cream Sauce
From Vegetarian Times

Mild goat cheese lends a sophisticated tang to this creamy, orange-hued sauce. Tossed with tiny green peas, toasted pine nuts, and festive bow ties (it&39;s fabulous with fettuccine and gnocchi too), the resulting dish is wonderfully easy and original. If you&39;re not a fan of goat cheese, try the recipe with Boursin or low-fat cream cheese. You can also add a grating of Parmesan cheese before serving, if desired.

DIRECTIONS

1. Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water according to package directions until al dente, adding peas during last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain in colander, and set aside. Quickly return empty pot to same burner (with heat off). Wait a few seconds until pot looks dry, then add pine nuts. Cook over medium heat 1 minute, or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Transfer nuts to plate.
2. Add oil to pot, and sauté garlic over medium heat 15 seconds, or until just beginning to brown. Stir in soup, half-and-half, and wine, if using; bring to a brisk simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer gently 3 minutes, or until mixture is slightly reduced and begins to thicken, stirring occasionally. Add cheese, and cook 2 to 3 minutes more, or until cheese is completely melted into sauce, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
3. Stir pasta, peas, and nuts into sauce in pot; toss well, and serve.
Member Rating:

Ingredient list
Serves 6
12 oz. farfalle pasta
1 cup frozen petite peas
2 Tbs. pine nuts
1/2 Tbs. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs.)
11/4 cups prepared creamy tomato soup
1/4 cup nonfat or regular half-and-half
1 Tbs. dry white wine, optional
3 oz. creamy mild goat cheese (6 Tbs.)

Nutritional Information
Per 1-cup serving:
Calories 341
Protein 11g
Total Fat 7g
Saturated Fat 3g
Carbs 57g
Cholesterol 7mg
Sodium 283mg
Fiber 3g
Sugar 4g

PS I skipped the pine nuts step in an effort to increase the kid appeal.

Black Bean Cocoa Quinoa

Oh how I've been lazy the last few weeks with cooking and such. Eve comes home next week and I've been working my ass off at practicum, school, and work. We have a huge assessment at work next week. I'm trying to make up as many hours as quickly as possible for my practicum, so cooking has taken a side line.

I did stumble on a new website (well, new to me) the other day and I fell in love. The site is called Daily Garnish and the recipe that I made was Black Bean Cocoa Quinoa. It was definitely a new and interesting flavor. I took it to a class potluck and it was a hit. Several people asked for the recipe, so here's the link if you're interested!
http://www.dailygarnish.com/recipes?recipe_id=6000057

It was pretty easy to make, although this was my first attempt at quinoa so I suspect it took me longer than it should have.

Chik'n Enchiladas

I have had a craving for chicken enchiladas lately, but since I quit eating chicken I had a slight problem. Fortunately for me, Morning Star Farms has a faux chik'n that is tasty stuff. I made the recipe listed below stolen from The Lazy Vegetarian. CRH wasn't in love. When I asked him what I could have done differently to make him like it, his reply was "Use meat". He doesn't seem to love recipes where I sub faux meat for actual meat.
I liked it and I fed the neighbor and he liked it, so I'm giving it a "B+". I added more cheese on top while it cooked and accidentally mixed the tomatoes into the mix instead of on top. I also used flour tortillas instead of corn. (We prefer flour.) Otherwise, I followed the recipe. :)

16 corn tortillas, 5" - I prefer the "extra thin" variety
1/2 cup finely diced onion
2 cups Mexican 4 cheese blend 2% shredded cheese (8 oz package)
1 small can, 4 oz, diced green chilies (or jalapenos)
1 package Morningstar Farms chik'n strips, cooked in a tiny amount of oil in a non stick pan, then chopped/shredded into small pieces
1 package (10 oz box or 12 oz bag) frozen chopped spinach: thawed, drained, and extra water squeezed out
10 oz can red enchilada sauce
14.5 oz can diced (or petite diced) no-salt-added tomatoes, quick drained (ok to leave some liquid)

Lightly oil the bottom of a 13"x9" pan or casserole dish. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine diced onions, cheese, green chilies, cooked and cut up chik'n strips, and thawed and drained spinach. Combine well.

Using a damp folded paper towel, heat the tortillas in microwave in groups of 4 for 20 - 30 sec.

Fill the tortillas generously with the filling, rolling and placing seam side down in dish.

Use same bowl to mix together enchilada sauce and diced tomatoes. Pour on top of filled tortillas, making sure that no tortilla spots are left completely dry.

Cover with foil and bake 15 min, then remove foil and bake another 10 - 15 min.

Shrimp and Feta Pizza

I have been super busy this week and totally uninspired to cook. I also haven’t been home before 8:30pm since Monday night. Thursday night, I managed to get home at a reasonable hour and after collapsing on the couch and talking to an old friend on FB chat about feta recipes…I was inspired again (and hungry!).

I whipped up a shrimp and feta pizza for dinner. I googled this to make sure that such a thing did exist and would be yummy goodness and the multitude of results that popped up assured me that it would be. I chopped up some garlic and sautéed it with the shrimp. Then I cheated and used Pilsbury thin crust pizza dough and loaded that onto the dough, along with fresh rosemary, sliced black olives, feta, and an Italian cheese blend from Kraft and oh…my…word. It was delicious!!!

Here’s a pic of it going into the oven…


And on my plate…YUM.

Reader Opinion

I went to my newly beloved Costco tonight and bought a giant tub of strawberries...giant tub. Even if my little strawberry loving kid was home, I don't know that we would eat all of these before they go bad. I've found some good recipes to use them in and then I stumbled onto this. It's a recipe for a strawberry salsa. The recipe calls for this to be served over grilled chicken, which we quit eating. Do you all think this would be yummy over a type of seafood?? I would love to make it, but I'm still learning in the ways of food pairing. Thoughts??

2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 serrano chile, seeded and minced
1/3 cup minced red onion
2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Homemade Meals All Day

I was supposed to start my practicum site today, but due to paperwork complications I don't start until next Tuesday. This left me with a free day and I decided to make all of my meals at home today.

Breakfast was a yummy, calorie trimmed version of the lox bagel. I make mine on a bagel thin with smoked salmon, capers, onions, and Weight Watchers Cream Cheese...oooooh so yummy and less calories than the regular way. Other than the decrease in breading, I can't taste a single difference.

Lunch was a crab cake sandwich made with these fantastic Costco crab cakes. CRH and I have been making crab cake items individually all week. They are sooooo good. He made a mayo for his the other night that I copied for mine today and it was fabulous. Eve wanted me to call her in the midst of eating it, so I couldn't quite savor it the way I wanted to, but I missed my baby and much preferred talking to her...really.



Dinner was Crispy Black Bean Tacos! I opted to make these when CRH wasn't home b/c he's not a fan of Feta cheese. Actually, he's branched out a lot on cheeses in the past decade, but he's not going near Feta. I bought a giant thing of it at Costco the other day, so I better find some other recipes for it soon. Here's the recipe for tonight's tasty treat. I made 2 of these for myself, so I cut the recipe in half as this makes 4. Total calories was only 500 for both! I subbed regular onion for the green onion b/c I am not a fan of the green onion.

Ingredients

1(15 ounce) can black beans, drained
1/2-1 teaspoon ground cumin
5 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 -1 1/2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 cups coleslaw mix
2 green onions, chopped
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro or 1/3 cup parsley
4 corn tortillas (white or yellow ) or 4 wheat flour tortillas
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
bottled chipotle hot sauce or hot sauce
Change Measurements: US | Metric

Directions:
Prep Time: 25 mins
Total Time: 25 mins
1. Place beans and cumin in small bowl; partially mash. Mix 2 teaspoons olive oil and lime juice in medium bowl; add coleslaw, green onions, and cilantro and toss to coat. Season slaw to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Heat 3 teaspoons olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortillas in single layer. Spoon 1/4 of bean mixture onto half of each tortilla; cook 1 minute. Fold tacos in half. Cook until golden brown, about 1 minute per side. Fill tacos with feta and slaw. Pass hot sauce alongside.



I think I need to work on my artistry in the form of food pictures. Clearly, it's not my forte. :)

Veggie Goodness and Some Not

I've been slack in cooking lately because CRH has been working a lot and without Eve home, it's just me. I'm not big on cooking for just me unless I know it's something I'll love as leftovers. I have a few things on the menu, but whatever...just haven't been in the cooking mood.



Today was no different and I stopped by one of my favorite island delis (Kalapawai Cafe & Deli in Kailua) on the way home from work for a take out dinner. I bought this yummy goodness, which was Eggplant Parmesan, grilled veggies, and roasted Brussels sprouts. I've wanted to try Brussels sprouts for the longest and I have to say that I'm officially over the urge. It was not love. I ate one of them, but I couldn't manage to get through the second one. To the deli's credit, I microwaved this plate to warm it so I think it toughened them up. I loved the rest of my meal. Their food is awesome, but I won't order the Brussels sprouts again. Blech...

Ode to Goat Cheese

I cannot even describe how much I love goat cheese. I haven't eaten much of it in the past decade because CRH is not a fan at all and I typically can't eat enough of it before it goes bad. While I love, love, love it...I don't enjoy eating the same thing in mass quantities.

When I went home to NC a few weeks ago, my mom took me to the Farmer's Market in Greensboro. The Goat Lady Dairy was there and I sampled each one of their flavors (just for fun) and ended up buying their Fig and Honey flavor. I almost embarrassed myself by raving over it to their completely personality less workers behind the table. Dear Goat Lady, If that was in fact you selling your cheese that day, please find some personality and customer service skills...you would sell more. Love, Amy.

Flash forward to last night...I've been craving more goat cheese and I stumbled across this recipe for Farfalle with a Tomato-Goat Cheese Cream Sauce a few weeks before leaving for NC but I hadn't tried it yet because again, I'm the only one here that eats goat cheese. Eve has never tried it, but I think the flavor will be too strong for her for a couple of years. Anyway, this pasta is some serious yumminess. It looks a little strange when you're mixing the cheese in and I became skeptical, until I put my finger into the pot to taste and it was instant love. The only things I did differently were omit pine nuts (because I didn't have any) and I used Herb Goat Cheese which added extra flavor. My apologies for the lack of photos, I've been slacking.
http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/11432?section=

I will add a picture of my garden, which is coming right along. I'm pleased to report that for the past two nights, I've made myself a salad using lettuce from my backyard garden that my neighbor helps me keep alive. It's grown a ton in the past month and I've also picked 2 strawberries off my little plant.

Sweet Potato Quesadilla and Portabello Mushroom Burgers - Oh My!

Clearly, I'm never going to lose a pound as a vegetarian, much to my dismay. I've gained about 12-15lbs (depending on the day) in the 9 months and I thought switching to a vegetarian life style would help this, but it's not. I love fatty things like cheese and oils and butter and sugar and well, it doesn't make the fat fall off my ass.

Today included a big meat cheat. A few days ago, I was going through one of my FB friends and former neighbor's food pics on FB. She had posted a picture of a Sweet Potato Quesadilla from Highway Inn in Waipahu. It's this local seafood market that is also a restaurant. Here in Hawaii, Okinawan Sweet Potatoes are big and I love them. It's a purple potato with a great flavor. Highway Inn pairs this with Kahlua Pork (I'm weak for it), cheese, and a papaya salsa. Oh dear lord, it was sooooooo good. In the future, I would ask them to make it without the pork because pigs are filthy animals that live in their own poop, but the one I ate sure tasted good.

For dinner, CRH and I wanted portabella mushroom burgers. I used this recipe and started making dinner, but thankfully CRH ended up taking over the making of the meal. I ate this mayo and he made his own, which was also very tasty and we added melted Havarti slices because what food isn't better with cheese?! (See the aforementioned love of fat that prevents me from losing my fat!)
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/grilled-portobello-with-basil-mayonnaise-sandwich/detail.aspx

Broth Dilemma

I'm having a broth dilemma, of the chicken kind. I'm working on the upcoming 2 weeks of menu planning and a lot of recipes that I keep coming across that initially seem vegetarian all have chicken broth in them! Uggg! What do you do?? Can you substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth in most recipes or does that totally change the flavor of it?
(I'm thankful this is about my biggest problem in life right now!)

Return to Veggies

This week I've been back to vegetarian. I'm considering re-watching Food, Inc. too in an effort to remind myself of the gross. I did eat meat some while I was home, and it was mostly tasty, but I'm just not feeling it. I keep thinking about that movie and the others I've seen and well, it's just gross. So, I'm back. I've had some super yummy foods this week to include
Red velvet pancakes...omg, these are the best things ever...ever.

Earlier in the week, I made some yummy Basil Calzones with soy protein. I loved them, CRH was a little on the fence. He said the flavors were just too distinct with the soy crumbles. Then the following night, I made a crockpot spinach pesto lasagna courtesy of the Crockpot lady blog. I have followed this blog for a long time, but I didn't have a crock pot here until December. So, I made this Thursday night and ate it for dinner. Yesterday, I took it for my co-worker and I to eat for lunch (he loved it!) and then I ate it again for dinner last night. It's just that good. Here's the link...go now and make it. OMG, one of the best meals I've ever cooked and SUPER easy!
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2010/09/slow-cooker-pesto-spinach-lasagna.html

Today, I branched out and went to a local Thai truck here in Haleiwa for lunch. I don't really eat Thai, but people rave about Opal's all the time so I thought it was time to try it. I was not disappointed. I went to order and the guy asked what I like and we talked a little and then he presented me with a tofu noodle dish that was fantastic and super cheap for food around these parts. I will definitely be returning for more!

Hiatus

I'm on a brief cooking and probably a brief hiatus from my new eating habits while I go visit family and friends in NC. With the exception of my friend, Sara, I think they are all hard core carnivores and if I want to eat without hassle, a little meat shall be had. Plus, there are a few mainland things that I just need to eat one more time. :) No worries though, I'm back at it when I return and will be posting new recipes and pictures as the journey continues around mid-June.

I had a seafood risotto for dinner tonight that was to die for! I really want to limit my seafood a little more when I return and rely a little less on it. It's super yummy and as I've discussed I probably won't ever be cut it out entirely from my diet, but I'd really like to move more toward actual vegetarianism. Seafood feels a little like cheating.

Discovery of Indian Food

I do not know how I've lived 35 years without eating this fabulous cuisine, but I'm officially in love. I went to an Indian restaurant for dinner tonight in town and I swear I had one of the best and most interesting meals of my life. It is a super crowded tiny little place and I refrained from photographing my meal because of the packed nature of the establishment and because it was kind of dark-ish in there.

Since this was a new experience, I wanted to try several things and ordered an appetizer and a meal...which is a boatload of food for me. For my appetizer, I had a vegetable samosa. It was a pastry type item filled with a spicy mixture of potatoes, peas, and carrots and it came with 2 sauces for dipping. I could have just eaten those as my meal, but then I would have missed the next yumminess.

For my entrée, I ordered the Chef Specialty which was Palak Peneer. It is a creamy spinach dish with homemade cheese and served with a side of rice that I mixed with it. I have no idea what spices were in it, but it is hands down one of my new favorite foods. I was lucky enough to be super full and only eat half of it, so I have lunch tomorrow! The meal also came with naan, which if you are unfamiliar with Indian food as I was before tonight, it's a super soft flat pita type bread...tasty!!

Thank you Cafe Maharini for a delicious dinner. I will be returning!