Monday, July 26, 2010

Eatin' out of the Pantry- Part 6

Tonight on the menu was Tempeh Chili.  You can find the recipe here.

















I am sad to say that the 'eating out of the pantry' challenge is now over.  I have run out of bananas, bread, and chips, so I better get to the store.  I must say, though, I did a pretty good job making up menus using only things that we had in the house!!!  You should give it a try sometime.  Flex your creative muscle!!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Eatin' out of the Pantry- Part 5

It's stuffed potato day!!!  WHOO!!  I LOVE stuffed potatoes.  This is a great travel food, as well as quick and easy meal to use up whatever you have in the fridge.
















I SWEAR there is a potato under there!  Simply bake a potato in the oven or in...the...microwave...eek... and top with cooked beans, salsa, whatever veggies you have to use, and avocado.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  If you use...the...microwave...eek... you can have this meal on the table in 15 minutes!!!  Great, quick meal.  Filling, too.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Eatin' out of the Pantry- Part 4

I am excited to share one of my most favorite burger recipes yet!!!  Thank you to Angela at OSG for sharing!!!

Here is her recipe, copied from when she posted it here:


Ingredients:
  • 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas
  • 1/2 cup regular oats
  • 10 baby carrots or 2 carrots
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil (or oil of your choice), melted
  • 1.5 tsp Arvinda’s Curry Masala (or other good quality curry powder)
  • 1/2 tsp Paprika
  • 1/4 tsp Tumeric
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp sea salt, to taste
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp Parsley flakes (optional)
  • 3 tbsp sunflower seeds
  • 1/4 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

Directions: Preheat oven to 375F. Grease a baking sheet or line with parchment paper and set aside. In a food processor, process the oats, carrots, and all the spices/seasonings (sea salt, black pepper, curry masala, paprika, tumeric, optional parsley) for 30 seconds or until somewhat smooth. Now add in the chickpeas at 1/2 cup increments and coconut oil (melted), stopping to scrape down the bowl as necessary. [My food processor was quite cantankerous during this process (it didn’t process the chickpeas well, but that may have been because I doubled the recipe and I had too much in my bowl!)]. Once the chickpeas are mostly processed and smooth, take the mixture and place in a medium sized bowl. Stir in the sunflower seeds and pepita seeds. Wet your hands and shape patties or balls. Makes about 6-8 patties depending on how big you want them. Note: You can also pre-bake these for about 20 minutes and them pop them on the BBQ to finish them off!

Here's my process, in pictures.






















































































These burger babies are FANTASTIC.  I used mine as a crouton (of sorts) on my salad for dinner.... HOLY YUM.


Friday, July 23, 2010

Eatin' out of the Pantry- Part 3

If you're trying to save money, eating out of the pantry is great if you have a lot to choose from.  We've been doing great so far.
















Rice and Beans with Veggies

This is one of the easiest meals I make.  I take quick cook brown rice and cook it in boiling water for 10 minutes.  Once cooked, drain and return to pan.  Place pan back on the oven burner and mix in cooked beans, whatever frozen veggies you have, and 1/4 cup of salsa.  Cook for 2-3 minutes, until hot, and spoon over a bed of lettuce.  Top with Franks Red Hot Sauce and slices of avocado.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Eatin' out of the Pantry- Part 2

So far so good!  Eating out of the pantry has been pretty easy so far!  Here is dinner:
















Tempeh Mash in Cabbage Leaves

In a pan over medium heat, cook chopped Tempeh and any frozen veggies you have on hand in enough tomato sauce to cover.  Simmer until hot and add salt and pepper to taste.  Spoon into a cabbage leaf, fold up like a burrito, and nom nom nom.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Eatin' out of the Pantry- Part 1

Good evening, everybody!  Whenever I have to buy new clothes, new appliances, new anything... I try and save in other places.  And it's not because we NEED to save in other places, it's just a habit.

So anyway, I told Brenton this week "let's try to eat out of the pantry for the entire week!" 

Here we go!

Our breakfasts and lunches aren't that exciting, so I'm going to stick to dinners.

Dinner 1-  Raw Pasta with Tomato Sauce
















Look how yummy!  I spiralized half of a yellow squash and topped it with a sauce made of cherry tomatoes blended with olive oil and garlic.  SO good.  SO SO good!!!  This is a great lunch, and in fact, I think I'm going to make this again tomorrow.  :)

Monday, July 19, 2010

Case-O-The Mondays?

Need a pick-me-up this morning??

I made a great new smoothie that will make the worst case of the Mondays go away!

















Hello yummy smoothie.  Where have you been all my life?

3 Beets
Handful of Blueberries
Juice of half of a Lemon
Handful of Spinach
Amazing Grass Green Powder
Top with Blackberries

Make it a great day!

Sunday, July 18, 2010

My New Addiction

I have a new addiction, and I'm sorry to say that they are SO addicting that I cannot buy them every week.
















I.  Love.  These.


What I love even more are the ingredients.






























Nice.




Aren't these little 'mistakes' cute?
































You can't really tell which flavor you'll get because they all look alike.  It's like a surprise in each bite!


If you're at TJ's any time soon, pick up a pack.  I think they're only $2.50ish.


Have a good Sunday!


Saturday, July 17, 2010

My Bullet!!!!!

This time baby, I'll be bullet-proof....

Couldn't resist.

Look what arrived in the mail?!





























My new bullet!!!  WOOOO HOOOO!!!!   And the best part is....

















SEE THAT?!  FREE!!!  DOUBLE WHOO HOOO!!!!  I won it from Camilla.  I haven't been able to try it yet because all of the parts are in the dishwasher, but as soon as I do, I'll report my findings.

One thing I do find funny though... anything ironic with this picture???
















So...uhh.... you're not supposed to touch the blade, yet there is a sticker that you have to peel off of it.  Hmm.....

Hope you have a wonderful Saturday!

Friday, July 16, 2010

Vegan Pizza

Hi everybody!  I made a YUMMY vegan pizza tonight for din din, complete with nut cheeze!!
































Fastest dinner ever.  EVER.  All I did was top an Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Tortilla with some Organic Pasta Sauce, Organic Frozen Veggies (literally whatever I had in the freezer... tonight was Peppers, Peas, and Spinach), Organic Zucchini, and a drizzle of Nut Cheeze.  Baked at 350 for 10 minutes on a cookie sheet.  Eat.  See how easy?  Hearty, too.

Nut Cheeze

3/4 C Nuts (I used Almonds and Sunflower Seeds)
1/2 Lemon (juiced)
1 t Garlic Powder
1/2 t Onion Flakes
1/2 t Sea Salt
1 c Water

Blend until smooth.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

STRESS is not my friend

Good Tuesday morning to you all!  I tell you what, lately my world has been busy, overwhelming, nerve-wracking, uncertain, exhausting, and insomnia inducing.  Sounds like fun, right?  Last night was another mind-buzzing sleepless night, and it's starting to catch up with me.  I haven't exercised in days, can barely keep up with the house, and I have turned to pre-made food as my go-to.  AH!  (faints)

The reason is because I'm working on a project.  Well, it's not really a PROJECT in the definition of the word, but we're going to call it that for now.  Once my project is off and rolling, I'll be able to discuss the details a bit more.  Let's just say that the big girl pants are being put on, one leg at a time.

That said, I feel like I'm back in my busy days of college.  Where I "didn't have time" to work out or take care of myself.  If you remember from previous posts, this way of 'taking care of myself' made me SICK SICK SICK.  Really sick.  Other things were my priority, and that's where I got into trouble. 

How do you find balance in your life?  Do you schedule out every detail down to the minute?  Do you just set aside a certain amount of time for things and then stop when that time is up?  Are there some things that you let go of that, in the grand scheme of things, aren't REALLY that important?  I think that last one is where I wobble-  figuring out what is REALLY important, and what isn't.

Well, that said, I'm off to do 20 min of exercise.  This also means that I won't be doing my hair all pretty for work today.  Oh well, I think they'll get over it :)  I think the stationery bike and some handweights are in order!

I would love to hear your advice!  How do you keep balance between work, projects, home, life, health, kids if you have any, family, sleep....ah!

Friday, July 9, 2010

At Least We're Not Detroit...

TGIF y'all!  What a week it's been, no!?

Last night, we here in Ohio were on pins and needles waiting to hear if LeBron James was going to stay with Cleveland or go to New York, Chicago or Miami.  Well, if you happened to turn on the news or go to Yahoo today, you'll see that LeBron is infact going to Miami.  The first word out of my mouth, as out of the mouths of other Ohioans was "NOOOOOOOoooooooooooooo!" (ok, when did I start caring about basketball?  it's not like it's Ohio State football... THAT I care about!)


But, let's be honest here!  Would YOU rather go to :






or....










Exhibit A:  Cleveland




















Exhibit B:  Miami

















I gotta tell ya, I know which one I would pick (especially from October through March)!!
Don't get me wrong, I love Cleveland.  I have lots and lots of family there, my dad is from there, and many friends are from there.  But if I had the choice, I would pick Miami, too!

That said, I would laugh REALLY hard if somehow Cleveland played Miami in the National Championship next year.  And won.  Here's rooting for the underdog!

Make it a great day, everyone!  TGIF!

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Wild Grass...erm...Rice...

This week is flying by- I can't believe it's Thursday already!!!  SHEESH!

Last night I made an EASY, yummy dinner

















Baked Sweet Potato topped with Wild Rice and Chickpeas.  (side note:  did you know that wild rice is actually a grass?!) Ok so this meal looks a little autumn-ish, but it sure was good!  I cooked the Sweet Potato and wrapped it in aluminum foil to keep warm.  In the meantime, I cooked the Wild Rice, and in the last 2 min of cooking added the Chickpeas to warm them.  I then drained the mixture and added in garlic powder, pink sea salt, white pepper, and paprika.  Mix it all together and TA-DA!, there you have it!  It was really good.  I have leftovers that I'm going to stuff inside a cabbage leaf tonight for dinner.  Hurray for leftovers making my life easy! And YUMMY!!!

Have a fabulous Thursday!!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Time... Is On My Siiiiide....

Maybe.

What a crazy last couple of weeks.  I swear, busy has become my middle name, and I'm EXAUSTED!!

In college, time management was beaten over my head (almost to the point of being annoying), and for a while, I was a time management expert!  Every hour of my day was planned out, from morning until night.  And then I got sick.  Really sick.  Every year.  I soon realized that I could not plan every hour and try to get as much done in a day as I possibly could, day in and day out.  I needed to make time for myself and let some things go.  I literally got SO stressed that I could feel a charge of electricity running through me, like I was always frazzled.  (very strange feeling... not pleasant).

That said, in order to keep my sanity, I have re-visited my time management days (in moderation...) and have put together a system that works for me.  Hopefully it works for you, too!

1- Before bed, make a to-do list of all that you want to accomplish during the following day.  This clears your mind and helps keep the night time tossing and turning at bay.

2- Prioritize your list, then estimate how long it will take to complete each task.  Assign a certain amount of time to each task and STICK WITH IT!! 

3-  If tasks don't take as much time as you thought they would, use that 'extra time' productively, whether it be for a hobby, something fun, or another small task on your checklist.

4-  If tasks are going to take more time than originally thought, either 1- STOP at the alotted amount of time and deal with it, or 2- REMOVE a task from your list to give yourself time to finish

5-  Don't be too demanding or too hard on yourself.  There is no need to over schedule!!   The less you schedule, the more you'll 'accomplish', and the better you will feel.

This is something that I did today and it helped me to be SO productive, and less stressed!!  Give it a try!

Friday, July 2, 2010

Nuts About Nut Cheeze!

Well, we've really done it now!  Hippie is officially my middle name hahaha.  Nut Cheeze is our new obsession, thank you Ani Phyo!!

Nut Cheeze:


2 C Nuts (any you happen to have)
1 Clove Garlic
1/8 t Sea Salt
1/4 C Lemon Juice
1/4-1/2 C Water (add at the end to achieve the desired cheeze consistency)

Blend all of the ingredients together!  That's it!


Blending.....

















finished product!!
















OOoohhh  myyyy.  So so so so good!!!  The more water you add, the more like "cheese whiz" it is (like you'd pour over nachos). 

It's plenty good like this, but if you would like, you could add some dried spices, chili powder, mesquite powder, chipotle powder-  whatever you'd like!!!  Be creative! 

If you're dairy free, brave, a raw foodie, or just interested in trying something new, try this nut cheeze!