Salmon fried rice and one for the dogs

This morning I groaned when I realized that the kibble bin was empty.

Then I remembered I had leftover rice in the fridge. 

This can only mean one thing - breakfast fried rice for all!

Salmon fried rice.

I chopped up a carrot and some kale and sauteed them till tender in a little olive oil. I set the veggies aside (these veggies went into my dish and the dogs' meal).

I initially took out three salmon patties from the freezer and defrosted them before remembering they had onion in them and the dogs couldn't eat them.

Well, I could give it to the dogs if I wanted them to get a horrible case of anemia but that usually isn't fun for anyone...

I went a little overboard on crisping up the salmon patty.

I set the salmon patty aside and apologized profusely to Abby who was drooling in anticipation of a fish breakfast.

For the dogs' meal I scrambled on whole egg in a little olive oil. The dogs have been obsessing over the local tofu I brought home the other day so I cubed up a handful and tossed that in with the egg.

Then 2/3 of the carrot and kale mixture went into the pan along with some canned peas (drained), 1 cup of cooked brown rice, soy sauce, oyster sauce and a little chicken broth.

This is a large stainless steel dog bowl.

I wanted to give you an idea of the portion sizes I feed if I am cooking a whole meal for the dogs. Abby weighs about 37lbs so she got about 1 cup of food. Connor weighs around 42lbs so he got 1 1/4 cup of food.

A drizzle of golden Udo's oil on top.

For my meal I put some chopped yellow onion and minced garlic in a pan with some olive oil.

I realized I had tomatoes I needed to use up so I gave one a rough chop and tossed that into the pan. 

Then I added 1/4 cup of cooked brown rice, the carrot and kale mixture, chicken broth, soy sauce, peas and the salmon patty chopped into pieces.

It was pretty tasty. What I liked most about it was that I got a hearty amount of protein and healthy fats with this breakfast.

Now I have to figure out what to do with the other salmon patties. I've got a feeling it is going to be a salmon-centric day.

Fiesta breakfast

As you may (or may not) have noticed, my bold resolution to try and attend most of the flow yoga classes at my YMCA has been a total bust.

I just couldn't get myself to go. Usually this lack of follow through would really bother me. I would be awash in guilt and self-criticism.


But I decided to try a different tact. I sat down and thought about what I really wanted. If you are anything like me, this is a fairly novel concept.


I decided what I really wanted was to NOT go to the yoga classes at the Y. Yes, most of them are just fine and a couple of the teachers are OK. But when I walk into a class I always feel like I am practicing yoga in my high school gym.

Anyone else hate their high school gym? [source]

All in all, it is not the yoga experience I have been craving.


I want to walk into the room and get a feeling like this:

Ahhh, nice and calm. [source]

After all that draining brain work I needed sustenance.

I grilled up one chicken and apple sausage and put a bunch of broccoli and green beans into the steamer.


When the sausage and veggies were done, I tossed them into a skillet with 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice, 2 chopped scallions, 2 Tbsp of salsa and 1/2 tsp of taco seasoning.

A great breakfast bowl that was heavy on the veggies, light on the rice and medium on the protein.

I am off to gather up all my yoga clothes and hit the laundry!


Happy Wednesday!

My favorite breakfast bowl (vegan)

I wish hotels would include this breakfast bowl on the room service menu.

 

Vegan breakfast bowl with vegan ranch dressing.

This bowl is also one of my favorite ways of including a vegan meal into my weekly diet.

The best thing about this bowl is the vegan ranch dressing that gets drizzled over black beans. 

When you make this dressing you will be licking the bowl and using your fingers to get up every last drop.

Yes, it is that good.

But back to the bowl:

Start with a layer of chopped romaine lettuce.

A layer of brown rice and a layer of black beans.

And here comes the star of the show:

See there? Off to the left? That is a jar of vegan ranch dressing.

And because it's Friday I won't make you wait till the end of the page for the recipe. (I slightly modified a recipe I found here.)

Vegan Ranch Dressing


Ingredients:

1/2 cup of Vegenaise

1/4 tsp. of onion powder


1/4 tsp. of garlic powder


1/4 tsp. of black pepper


1 tsp. of flat leaf parley, chopped fine


1/4 cup of unsweetened soymilk

Instructions:

Whisk all the ingredients together until smooth. Use immediately or store in the refrigerator. 

Enjoy!

And once again back to the bowl:

A healthy drizzle of the vegan ranch dressing.

Lastly, I top the bowl with some diced avocado and some salsa.

But, of course I can't let the bowl sit like that.

All mixed up and ready to eat!

What I like most about this bowl (other than the dressing) is the fact that in one bowl I get a nice hit of protein from the black beans, some healthy carbs from the rice, a dose of greens AND some healthy fats from the avocado.

A perfect way to start the day IMO.

Even if you are not a fan of a black bean/rice/salad bowl for breakfast, you should make the vegan ranch dressing as soon as possible. 

If you are a ranch dressing lover like me, you will have a very hard time not chugging this dressing straight from the bowl.

And be sure to use fresh, flat leaf parsley because I think that one ingredient was the key to dressing.

Happy Friday everyone!

All in a day

Mustard rubbed salmon with brown rice and green beans.

I scrapped the idea of doing the recipe I had planned because the idea of something simmering on the stove for 2 hours was just too much to bear.

Instead I made some salmon. I rubbed the salmon filet with yellow mustard (use dijon if you like that wasabi bite) and then sprinkled it with bread crumbs, paprika and a pinch of salt.

Then it went into a hot skillet, skin side down, for 4 minutes and then I flipped it and cooked it for another 4 minutes.

On the side I added some leftover brown rice and some green beans that steamed while the salmon cooked.

A great lunch that was ready in under 10 minutes. 


Yup, it's all in a day - fast, simple food that doesn't come out of a can or a box.

 

The three B's and losing time.

I didn't do anything of note today - but the day got away from me.

In a good way. 

And my resolve to eat on a more regular schedule went out the window. Introduce a bit of fun and distraction? I totally forget about eating.

At dinner time I threw together this:

Homemade pesto over bed of steamed broccoli nestled on top of brown rice.

Broccoli, basil and brown rice. The three B's.

Oh, and I forgot a photo of Connor enjoying the scent of the fresh basil.

I hope the rest of you had a day where the time got away from you because you were having fun!

Bibimbap

At a company I used for work years ago, there was a tiny deli across the street that was family run.

They always had Bibimbap on the menu. It became one of my favorite lunches.


What I like most about Bibimbap? Everyone seems to have a slightly different recipe.


Today, I decided to create my version of Bibimbap.

I stopped by the local Japanese grocery store Nijiya and picked up some thinly sliced beef.

I mixed up a marinade of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, green onion, rice wine, sugar and finely chopped ginger.

Marinate the meat for 2 -3 hours.

I put 1/2 cup of brown rice on to simmer with 1 1/4 cups of water and cooked until tender.

Next, I started chopping up the rest of the ingredients.

Red leaf lettuce, zucchini, green cabbage and carrot.

I stir fried the carrot and zucchini in a tiny bit of oil in a hot pan. This only took about 3 minutes as I wanted them as crunchy as possible.

I quickly stir fried the meat in a hot pan. This step is also very quick. Be careful to keep turning the meat and take it off immediately when it finishes cooking.

Then the assembly begins:

A layer of rice -

Then the vegetables are placed around the perimeter. Then pile the meat in the middle.

A generous drizzle of Sriracha sauce on top.

But, of course, I can't leave the dish looking so pretty and pristine.

All mixed up!

I am going to spend the afternoon apartment hunting online - See y'all later!