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.

Teriyaki stir fry

Teriyaki stir fry.

For lunch I pulled out my last package of soy noodles.

And again, one of my favorite things about these noodles is that I can eat the entire package and it is only 40 calories.

 

While the noodles were parboiling, I chopped up some kale, a carrot, red bell pepper and some mushrooms.

Then I mixed up some homemade Teriyaki sauce (I modified a recipe I found here).

This dish was amazing! Definitely a recipe to make over and over again.

Note to self: Wait for the bowl to stop steaming before taking a picture.

 

 

 

Right before lunch I did the Stronger & Hotter workout at Bodyrock.tv.

The workout was intense! And I did all the modified versions :-((

The site does a great job of providing thoroughly explained options for beginners.

Since I was unfamiliar with all the moves I made myself a cheat sheet.

And no, I do not have feet that are large blobs and that are the same size as my head. Why do ask??



Teriyaki stir fry with soy noodles

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 package of Tofu Shirataki noodles
1 carrot, sliced thin
4 kale leaves, chopped
3 button mushroom, sliced
1/4 of a red bell pepper, diced
1/2 tsp of grape seed oil

Teriyaki sauce:

1 Tbsp of mirin
2 1/2 Tbsp of soy sauce
1/2 tsp of rice vinegar
1/8 tsp of sesame oil
2 tsp raw honey (you can substitute sugar)
1 clove of minced garlic
1/2 tsp of of minced ginger
1/8 tsp of chili paste

Instructions:

Chop up the carrot, kale, mushrooms and red bell pepper and set aside.

Cook the soy noodles according to package directions. When cooked, drain the noodles and set aside.

Combine the sauce ingredients (use a microwave safe bowl) and heat it up in the microwave for 30 seconds that the honey melts.  Stir the sauce and set it aside.

Put a skillet over medium-high heat and add in the oil. When the oil is hot, add in all of the vegetables and stir continuously until the vegetables are tender but still a bit crisp. Turn the heat down to medium and add in the soy noodles and pour the sauce on top. Stir till everything is well coated in the sauce and let cook another few minutes till everything is heated through.

Plate your delicious teriyaki noodles and top with some sliced green onions.

Enjoy!

Mac & Cheese with kale

Vegan Mac & Cheese with kale.

I am sure you are all just dying to know that I spent much of the day staring at my teeth with a hand mirror.

Ever been blissfully unaware about some part of your appearance and then someone points it out you just can't help obsessing? 

Yup, that was me today.



I am going to try and control myself tonight and apply the Crest white strips for the recommend 30 minutes instead of leaving them on for 3 hours in the vain hope of faster results. 


Comfort was the order of the day today and so enters the Mac & Cheese.

The dogs got to enjoy a piece of the uncooked fresh pasta because the second I opened the fresh pasta package they were both in the kitchen with their noses in the air sniffing.

Nothing too new in this dish. I was just doing more experimentation.

But I can tell you what I put in it:

unsweetened soymilk
nutritional yeast
paprika
tumeric
onion powder
garlic powder
Earth Balance spread
All Purpose Flour

While the pasta was cooking I tore up some kale and threw it into the pot.

The sauce is simple: Put all the ingredients in the pot and simmer till thickened. 

Drain the pasta and kale and pour the sauce over everything and stir till everything is coated in the cheese sauce.

A very satisfying Tuesday night meal.

Night all.

Clean as a whistle

No, these aren't my teeth. I wish...

I just got back from the dentist. I am cavity free and from what the dental hygienist said, I do a great job at keeping plaque at bay.

Unfortunately, things are not all roses and rainbows. I have a chipped front tooth (it happened when I was six) and when I was a kid I was so proud of it that I refused to get it fixed.

But it seems the two front teeth are starting to show the effects of the 'traumatic teeth event' and are started to turn a darker shade. Ewww.

So it looks like I may have to get veneers in the future, sigh.

After the bad news I headed over to Draeger's and treated myself to a breakfast salad.

When I got home I realized that maybe I shouldn't be eating beets (which stain everything) with newly polished teeth so I picked them out.

I couldn't resist adding a light sprinkle of blue cheese.

I love the big slices of chicken breast that are available at the salad bar.

And I picked up some fun things:

Organic rainbow carrots and organic Lacinato kale.

The kale is an incredibly deep shade of green. I can't wait to figure out a way to use it.

And lastly:

Organic and locally made fresh pasta.

I picked a shape that I thought would work well with mac & cheese.

And before I have to truly contemplate the possibility of veneers I am going to head out and pick up some Crest White Strips and see if they perform a miracle on my front teeth.

A rainbow begining

My day started with a rainbow:

Pears, apples, carrots, kale, parsley and a banana.

Everything went into the juicer and out came this:

I feel very orange now :-) Oh, and I did add in 1 tsp. of Udo's oil to the drink.

I decided to try this - 

A 1/4 cup of the pancake mix went into a bowl along with an egg white, soy milk, wild raspberry honey, canola oil.

The result? one perfect pancake.

Topped with maple syrup.

And just so you know, I didn't juice the banana.

 

Here is hoping for a very productive day...

Blueberries, pears and kale, Oh, my!

I broke out the juicer this morning. 

I am using a Breville - on loan from my sister. 

The most important rule about using this juicer? Make sure to rinse all the part thoroughly IMMEDIATELY after juicing - No exceptions! Otherwise the pulp will dry and harden up like cement and be very hard to remove. You have been warned.


The ingredients - 

I threw in a carrot, a couple of stalks of celery, two handfuls of blueberries, a red pear, some kale and a nice juicy cucumber. 

My sister gave me a great tip about juicing - when adding slightly bitter greens in with your juice (like kale) make sure to include a pear - which, for some reason, seems to work better at mellowing out the taste than apples. 

The results.

A mug full of antioxidant goodness.

The dogs got a handful of blueberries sprinkled over their kibble. It is always fun to watch them hunting down each little juicy globe before they move on to the rest of their meal. 

On the agenda today - hitting the farm stand for a fresh supply of eggs and veggies. And if it doesn't rain - possibly some pictures of chickens. :-)