5 miles down

Morning salad.

This morning I woke up vibrating with agita.

I got up and strapped on my running shoes and the dogs didn't blink an eye.


These are the beasts that do every thing they can to wake me up to get them to dish out their food - every.single.morning.

Abby looking sweet and beautiful - She is definitely not sweet...

Not today. 

I am sure they are exhausted from me flopping around in the bed all night like a fish pulled up on the dock. Yes, I am fun to sleep with...


5 miles done and I get home to the dogs dancing around in ecstasy. 


Apparently me arriving home in a good mood is a wonderful thing.


The dogs enjoyed some smoked salmon while I made a morning salad. 

It started out with some good olive oil.

This is my go to salad when my stomach is giving me trouble. I found it here (scroll down to the delicious daily vegan salad) and it has very little fat but tons of flavor - just what a body needs when you are feeling very belligerent about having to give up fat laden foods.

I steamed up 1/4 of a potato, a handful of green beans, 1 carrot and 1 cup of broccoli florets and then I assembled the dressing.

1 tsp of olive oil, 3 tsp of balsamic vinegar, 2 pinches of dried oregano, 1 Tbsp of fresh chopped basil, 1 Tbsp of nutritional yeast and a dash of dried garlic, cracked pepper and salt.

If you have to eat lots of salads it is best to get the prewashed stuff.

About 2-3 cups of lettuce went into my salad bowl and everything got mixed together.

I highly recommend this salad and when my stomach was at its worst I was known to eat this dish 3 times a day.

True story.

And I wonder why I have trouble eating enough protein...


And a big call out to Gourmet Runner who just finished her first marathon - Congrats!!!

Savory pomegranate quinoa bowl

Savory quinoa with pomegranate, basil and celery.

The star of breakfast this morning was this beauty:

 A beautifully ripe pomegranate.

I cooked up 1 cup of quinoa with some chicken broth. When the quinoa was done, I put most of it away in the fridge for another meal and kept 1 cup of the cooked quinoa in the pot.

To the quinoa I added 1 Tbsp of nutritional yeast, 1 tsp of greek yogurt and some cracked black pepper. 

I let the quinoa warm through and then added 3 fresh basil leaves, chopped fine. As soon as the basil was fragrant, I tossed in a couple of handfuls of pomegranate seeds and one stalk of celery, chopped fine. 

Then it all went into a bowl and quickly into my tummy:-)

It was an interesting dish - I liked the hint of cheesiness of the quinoa and that paired well with the cool crunch of the celery and the citrusy bite of the pomegranate and the occasional herbal burst from the basil.

I have been in what I can only describe as a 'dull' mood since I returned from my trip. 

This morning I decided I needed an exciting goal to pick up my spirits. I have decided to select some of my favorite dishes from local restaurants and remake them at home.

The first dish on my list? Mantu. 

Dumplings filled with ground lamb and onions and topped with yogurt and vegetable sauce.

I posted here about enjoying a meal of afghan food at Kabul restaurant a while back. The other day I realized that they have a restaurant in my town. Yay!


So, tomorrow I am heading over to enjoy some mantu and then I will try remaking it on Saturday. Wish me luck!


I hope everyone is having a great Thursday!

Mac and cheese > oatmeal

I started out this morning seriously contemplating having oatmeal.

Then I ended up having this:

Quinoa  mac and cheese with corn and crispy 'chicken' nuggets.

 But I am getting ahead of myself. While I was looking for the oatmeal I spotted this:

And I remembered I had this in the freezer:

And I had this to use up:

Add in some soymilk, nutritional yeast, Earth Balance blend, some corn starch, paprika, garlic, a dash of salt and pepper, some quinoa macaroni cooked al dente, some cooked red corn and three pieces of 'chicken' nuggets browned in the oven and you get this:

An extra sprinkle of paprika on top.

This was so good that I ate the whole thing BEFORE blogging. Shocking - I know!

The dogs were begging for some but I was not going to share.

Fine - I did give them some leftover pizza to compensate if you must know but only after I finished eating. I do have standards...


If you are looking for a mac and cheese recipe you can find a full recipe I posted here. 


I make is a bit different every time but that is a good place to start.


I hope everyone is having a great Sunday!





 

You asked for it - Mac & "cheese" recipe

A few of you have asked for the recipe for the cheese-less Mac & "Cheese". 

And then when Natalie said she was getting her first package of nutritional yeast this week I decided to make another batch of Mac & "Cheese" and actually bother to measure this time :-)

Keep in mind that this does not give you the same cheesy flavor as Mac & Cheese that comes out of a box with the orange powder, but it is a great alternative.

Also keep in mind that this is a basic recipe and you should feel free to add things or increase certain flavor profiles to fit your own taste. 

But I do think this recipe gives you the same creamy mouth feel of a cheese sauce and I like how easy it is to tweak it and try out something new each time I make it.

My Mac & "Cheese"

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp of Earth Balance Spread
1 Tbsp of All Purpose Flour
1/4 cup of nutritional yeast
1 tsp of Miso Mayo (you can substitute miso paste)
1/2 tsp of soy sauce
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1/2 tsp of onion powder
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp of sweet paprika
1/4 tsp of tumeric

 

Instructions:

In a sauce pan, melt the Earth Balance spread over medium low heat. Add in the flour and whisk together until it forms a paste. Let this cook until the past darkens just slightly.

Add in the soymilk and stir to combine. Add in the rest of the ingredients and let the sauce simmer until thickened.  Feel free to add some water or a little more soymilk if the sauce gets too thick.

Cook one serving of your pasta of choice. Drain the pasta and add back into the pan and pour in the "cheese" sauce. 

Options: Add a bit of yellow mustard if you like tang. Add in more nutritional yeast if you want more of a cheesy flavor.

Enjoy!

The ultimate pair: Jam and Eggs

Scrambled eggs on a bed of spinach tossed with Strawberry balsamic vinaigrette.

So, I have seen the eggs and jam combo on blogs lately and figured I would try it.

I ended up tweaking it a bit because when I woke up this morning I just couldn't stomach the idea of the cloying sweetness of jam.

Instead I tossed some baby spinach with some Strawberry balsamic vinaigrette (just the level of sweet I could handle).

Then I scrambled up some eggs with some nutritional yeast, shallots, fresh thyme and a dash of salt and pepper.

When the eggs were cooked I tossed in some chopped tomato and breakfast was served

 

I was trying out this new instant coffee I picked up at the store the other day.

This looked really promising and it was really strong which I liked but it did end up being a bit too bitter. 


And I made myself a little fruit salad to go with my eggs and kinda-jam.

I am contemplating quitting the YMCA because I haven't been making it to the gym like I used to. 


Then I thought, "Well, I have only gone to 2 of the yoga instructors classes - why not try all of them before the membership would expire at the end of the month?"


Which I think is a great idea. So, tomorrow I will be up at the early hour of 6:45 to hit Flow Yoga. My goal is to try most of the flow yoga classes over the next week.

Abby slept much better last night so we are going to head out for a nice, slow meandering walk to start our day:-)

Happy Thursday!

Crab egg florentine

Crab egg florentine with lime mustard hollandaise.

I woke up this morning wanting Eggs Benedict but the pickings are pretty slim in my cupboard and fridge at the moment so I made some substitutions.

The dish started with a layer of cooked quinoa.

Then I layered on a big handful of fresh spinach.

Next came a generous layer of canned crab meat.

Everything was topped with one perfectly poached egg.

Lastly, the star of the show appeared!

Lime mustard hollandaise sauce.

This was a very comforting and delicious breakfast.

Lime mustard hollandaise sauce

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of unsweetened soymilk
1/4 cup of water
1 Tbsp. of Earth Balance spread
1/2 Tbsp. of all purpose flour
2 Tbsp. of nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp. of yellow mustard
The juice from 1/2 of a small lime
a pinch of garlic powder
a pinch of onion powder
a pinch of salt
ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:

Melt the Earth Balance spread in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add in the flour and stir until the roue slightly darkens then add in the water and soymilk.

Add the rest of the ingredients and let the sauce come up to a simmer. Stir frequently. When the sauce starts to thicken turn the heat to low. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Breakfast of champions - if champions ate quinoa

I did pick up some new bedding during my shopping trip to Ikea.

And it is doggie approved :-)

Abby testing out the new sheets. Connor is there too but you can only see his butt.

As I was perusing the pantry this morning I spotted my jar of nutritional yeast.

So this morning's breakfast was comprised of the following ingredients:

1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
1/4 cup of quinoa cooked in vegetable broth
4 florets of broccoli, chopped fine
a handful of spinach leaves torn into small pieces
1 button mushroom, chopped
1/4 of an onion
1 clove of garlic
2 egg whites

This turned out really delicious. And since I threw in the broccoli and spinach into the pot with the quinoa and let it all cook together it was super simple.

I did cook the garlic and onions in a skillet over low heat while the quinoa simmered. When the onions just started to caramelize, I tossed in the mushrooms, covered the pan and let it cook another 5 minutes.


I pulled the onions, garlic and mushrooms out of the pan and then added in the 2 egg whites. I let them cook on low until just set.

Oh, yes, and I stirred in 1 Tbsp. of nutritional yeast into the quinoa when it was done cooking. The nutritional yeast added a nice cheesy flavor that paired really well with the slightly sweet taste of the onions.

I thought this was a great breakfast that was packed with protein from both the quinoa and the egg whites. And I got a nice dose of greens as well. It was definitely a breakfast of champions :-)

I enjoyed my bowl of quinoa with a plump peach and a big mug of tea with soymilk.

I can't believe it is Monday already. Where did the weekend go?

Too good to be true?

I am easily swayed by rave reviews. I have been seeing ads for this product everywhere:

Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus

And then when I looked around the internet for reviews - it has a surprising amount of really positive reviews. Will I buy it? I am still on the fence.

Has anyone else tried this? And how did you like it?

After pulling myself away from the computer I made this for breakfast - 

Mixed berry kefir with muesli, scrambled egg whites with nutritional yeast, 1/2 scoop of Amazing Grass in water, coffee and an apple.

 

 

This looks like a lot for breakfast but each of the bowls are small. In fact, the bowl that has the egg whites is a children's size rice bowl.

I am going to have to get more nutritional yeast because I am going through it like nobody's business - I love how it makes egg whites look like regular eggs (yes, I am easily fooled) and the extra cheesy taste doesn't hurt either.

Egg whites with 1 1/2 Tbsp. of nutritional yeast, black pepper and a sprinkle of paprika and parsley.

I may torture myself later by going to the store to stare longingly at the Clinique cosmetic counter...

Cheesy scrambled eggs

I was very proud of my eggs this morning. They came out fluffy and flavorful.

Today I added 1/2 teaspoon of Bulgarian yogurt with 1 whole egg and 3 egg whites, a pinch of salt, 1 Tbsp. of nutritional yeast and cracked black pepper.

The Bulgarian yogurt added a hint of lemony tartness and with the cheesy nutritional yeast? It reminded me a bit of hollandaise sauce, MMMMM.

Eggs are topped with a pinch of paprika and some dried parsley. 

My coffee was bizarre this morning.

It turns out that adding almond milk to coffee is not such a great idea. 

It tasted OK - but I think I will stick with soy milk in the future. Sure, soy milk separates a bit too - but not this much.

I at my breakfast in stages today. Mostly because the eggs cooked much faster than the oatmeal and I wanted to eat them before they got cold and rubbery.

Breakfast course 2 - 

McCann's Irish oatmeal with 1/2 teaspoon of peanut butter with a little drizzle of wild raspberry honey.

I cooked 1/4 cup of oatmeal with 1 cup of water. This takes a while - about 30 minutes - until it is creamy and tender.

 Oh, and a pear.

I was re-reading the articles on nutrition and muscle building at Bodybuilding.com - they definitely seem to stress the 6 small meals a day for optimal muscle growth. 

What is your opinion about the frequency of meals and it's supposed effect on metabolism and muscle growth? 

Mac & Cheese and why manicures make me cry

I love getting manicures.

I love the idea of perfect nails.


Does my love for either one of those things bring me joy? No. It only brings about an initial state of euphoria followed by tragic heartache and tears.

Which results in the need for comfort - cue the Mac & Cheese...

To fully understand my sorrow take a look at my nails during my euphoric stage:

Semi-pristine looking nails.

I was blissfully cooking away when I noticed this:

*gasp* Oh, the horror!!

The camera kept focusing on my middle finger - I suspect my camera has a hidden, cheeky sense of humor. 

And, no my hands usually don't look so crone-like - but they did after my desperate attempt to remove the yellow stains. Tumeric (or yellow mustard - I am not sure which) and manicures do not go together.


So now you know why I needed -

Why only two shots of the Mac&Cheese? Because it is really hard to photograph things when dogs are in your face.


Example 1:

Abby with schmutz on her muzzle.

Connor - who has added a nice tone of agita to his 'in your face' technique.

  
Oh, and before I type out the recipe - I bit the bullet and made an About page. Eeek! Check it out at the top of the page:-)




Mac & Cheese

Serves 1-3 depending on your need for comfort.

Ingredients:

2 cups of pasta (any kind) cooked al dente

2 pats of butter

1 tsp. of AP flour


1 cup of chicken broth


1/2 cup of milk


2 cups of nutritional yeast


1 pinch of tumeric


1/2 tsp. of yellow mustard


1 dash of powdered garlic


1 pinch of salt


cracked black pepper to taste

1/2 tsp. of lemon juice (fresh or bottled)


Directions:

Cook 1 cup of dry pasta in 1 quart of salted water until al dente, drain and set aside.

Put a saute pan on medium heat. Add the two pats of butter into the pan. When the butter is melted, add in the flour and stir for a few minutes.

Add in the rest of the ingredients and allow to simmer (you may need to turn the heat down to low at this point) until the sauce is thick and bubbly. 

Pour the cooked pasta into the saute pan and mix well with the sauce. Pull the pan off the heat and let the pasta hang out with the sauce for a couple of minutes. 

Grab a plate and enjoy!