Oven Aversion

Changes and friendships

2010-12-11T20:51:00.000-06:00

Today has turned out to be a pretty good day.

I am feverishly working on updating a new online calendar. I'm kind of a calendar nerd and love setting them up, getting organized, and having all that info at my fingertips. I'm not always so good at following through with the long lists I place on the to-do section or remembering to log in daily to see what I am supposed to have each day. Still, we'll see how this new one works out. You can check it out for yourself at Cozi.

I slept in late and then took a short nap later in the day. I had my book club on Thursday night, and we talked late late into the night. We don't quite have down the style to actually talk much about the book, but it's fun to chat with a great group of girls at least!

On my own I'm reading The China Study, and am transitioning to eating vegan now. Why I decide to change my eating habits during the holidays I shall never know, but so be it. I already feel much better when I eat only vegan foods. We still have a decent amount of non-vegan foods in the house, so I imagine it will be a slow transition as we eat up the non-vegan items at home. It doesn't seem right to waste a bunch of food, so we'll probably eat some and donate some.

Irish has vehemently refused to watch Super Size Me with me. He is enjoying a guy's night at the movies right now, and it is recording on my DVR for me to watch alone. Thanks to Discovery Health for airing it so I can finally see it!

Question of the day: Do you think there is a particular time in line when we are the wisest at choosing our friends? I think we always choose our friends based on the set of people available to us at the time. As kids, it is the others in our neighborhood or schools. As adults, it's people at work or the infamous FOAFs (friend of a friend). I recently rediscovered my childhood best friend online. We moved apart and didn't keep in touch starting in early elementary school. But strangely enough, when I found her, it turns out that she's a vegan!!! Who could've guessed! And I'm making friends now in our newly formed book club, which is great, but I think it's been well over a decade since I've had friends with priorities so drastically different from mine. I see the "keeping up with the Joneses" mentality now. I certainly wouldn't be able to invite them to my home after hearing about where they live... they would probably be too afraid to step out of their cars anyways. And yet, they consider themselves average to below-average for the crowds they associate with. It's an interesting and very different group from my norm to be sure. So when do you think we have the most authentic friendships?

Sore throat woes

2010-10-30T14:44:00.000-05:00

This past week was total chaos. Things were insane at work, there was almost no down-time at home either, and healthy eating dwindled to a minimum. A sad state of affairs, for sure!

In light of all that, I can't say that it surprised me when I woke up this morning with a sore throat. One of those that makes all the sinus connections in your head hurt. So I used the neti pot on my nose, hydrogen peroxide rinse for my ears, and concocted the mother of all sore throat gargles. I figured, why pin my throat comfort on just one gargle recipe with one ingredient. So I combined several ingredients into one.

Oddly enough, I also think I stumbled upon a quick easy vegan/vegetarian broth base as well in the process!

So here is my Sore Throat Gargle info. You have the option to make it acidic or alkaline, depending on your preferences. From what I read, either can kill the bacteria, but some are more immune to acid while almost none are immune to alkaline. You should rinse out your mouth after using the gargle, especially if you use the acidic version.

Sore Throat Gargle

Start either version with

1 cup water
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp garlic
1/4 tsp ginger
1 tsp sea salt

Heat until very warm.

For ALKALINE:

Add 1 tsp baking soda

For ACIDIC:

Add 2 tsp ACV (apple cider vinegar), 1 tsp lemon, and 2 tsp honey.

Stir well. Gargle for 1 minute. Repeat in 15 minute intervals, then less often as the pain subsides.

If you don't have all the ingredients listed above (cayenne pepper, garlic, ginger, etc) you can omit them as you wish. They each have various "claims to cures" for sore throats.

Oh, and the vegan/vegetarian soup base? All those optional ingredients! Mix all of them with the amount of water that makes it palatable to your tastes. 1 cup water (as used in the gargle) will be very strong.

Vegan Soup Base

Water
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or less for less of a punch)
1/4 tsp garlic
1/4 tsp ginger
pinch of sea salt

Well, it's time for me to gargle again, so wish me luck and I hope you all stay healthy this weekend!!

Any big Halloween plans this weekend? Anybody else have sore throat remedies that help? If so, I'm all ears!!

Up to speed

2010-09-07T23:45:00.001-05:00

Sadly it's been a long dry spell without time for blogging. That's because it's been a very busy time in real life. For the most part, it's been a good busy. There has been some turmoil at the workplace, but other than that it's all been positive. And there's always going to be some kind of drama anywhere you work. At least that's my philosophy. I try to be very go-with-the-flow and avoid all the mess that I can. Life is an adventure, why make it a bad one right?!

We've taken a few trips, about to take one more, done some spring cleaning, visited with friends, explored new hobbies... fun stuff! It's just meant that I haven't had time at the end of the day to hop on the computer and write. All in all the computer is now a very tiny part of my life.

I've been vegetarian for about 10 months now and am so happy that I changed my eating habits. I love the flavors and variety that you can experience eating veggie, and I now have no problem requesting veggie options at restaurants. I used to be timid about it, afraid that I'd get eye rolls or spit in my food. Now I'm bold and eager to make requests. My favorite is when they check back to see if this or that ingredient is ok, basically to see if I want it vegan. Usually I very graciously thank them and request that because it means they're aware and I love that.

Another new development is that I'm now lactose intolerant. I had a couple weeks where I did not eat or drink any dairy. When my mother-in-law came into town, we ate out a lot and that led me to having dairy again. I woke up sick each morning from the previous night's dinner and had doubled-over tummy pains. I was relieved when she left and I could control my foods better. I started to track and pin down the issue, and it was definitely dairy. While I will occasionally have dairy foods and take a lactase enzyme pill, I am by-and-large one step closer to eating vegan as a result.

One of the most challenging things about eating differently is the questions and comments you get from people. I'm pretty sure my in-laws hate that their son's wife is a "granola hippy dippy fruit loop" who is encouraging them both to eat crazy things like vegetarian entrees. I frequently get comments that the person could never live without meat. I also get grilled about my protein sources. Usually from out of the blue and from people who have not reached any level of friendship with me. It's certainly a question that I can answer, but I kind of feel like asking them to name which foods they ate that day to reach their 5 fruits and veggies and 11 whole grains. I'd bet money that I could answer easier than them.

The most pleasing result has been some of the surprising people who are supportive. It just proves that you can't judge a book by its cover. One was a woman whose husband guts deer in their garage after he hunts. (Although realistically it should not surprise me since she regularly has to walk in on that gruesome scene.) Another was a big ol' redneck guy who would love to hunt one of every animal if it were feasible. He just asked if I'd be asking him not to eat meat. I said no, and he said we were cool. Que sera sera, let it be, amen!

Well I've rambled quite awhile now, so I better get going. I'm using our TEeeny computer so I can't do pics. Sorry! :( Hope everyone is doing well and I'll be trying to make the rounds as time allows! Lots of love!

Myth busting

2010-07-19T20:56:00.000-05:00

Hi my long lost friends!
Yes I am still alive. Yes I still try to read as I get the chance. Yes life has completely gotten in the way of blogging.

So here's the short version: Life was getting a little out of control. I was trying to juggle too many things at once, and my health was suffering. Sleep deprivation, frustration, stress, quality time, it was all just getting messy.

I took some drastic measures that really shook things up for a little while. Forced myself to create some boundaries in work-life. Slept when I got too tired, even if that meant I fell asleep on the floor. (Let me just say that I think my back is now prepared to visit an ashram in India one day from the number of hours I crashed on our living room floor.) Didn't touch a home computer, blog, email, or anything personal that related to electronics for a week+ on end. When I did, I would pay bills, check quickly that I hadn't received dire emails of relatives falling ill, and sign right back out.

I had to put the life back in living.

I have to say that I love it!

I doubt I'll be a full-time blogger. I definitely want to post as I'm able. I have a long list scribbled on a piece of paper of things I've been wanting to post. I may not have many pictures. I may not be whipping up a ton of original recipes. I may have a few days between posts. It will come as it comes. It will be organic. It will fit into my life and not the other way around.

While I don't feel like blogging ever became a burden before (because I enjoyed it), I was pulling in too many directions. I have wrapped up several projects during this outage, which helps immensely. I have made changes in other areas of my life as well. I may have future periods of silence when new projects crowd out the few minutes I have available each night to be productive. Life always has those curve balls. The only way to plan for them is to plan to be flexible.

Coming down the pipeline one day soon will be my new domain name. It's been purchased already so I just have to seam the site and blogger together. Then from there may be further changes at some point. One thing at a time. Blog will be laid back, not type A!

So there you go. Question of the day is your turn. What do you want to ask me? Is there even anybody left??

Yoga and Expectations

2010-05-20T00:24:00.000-05:00

I went to yoga again tonight. I'm really enjoying it and one of the best parts is rearranging my work schedule to try to ensure that I can break free in time. Kind of makes me want to line up classes every night! Of course the logical thing would be to realign my day anyway and practice when I get home each day.

I just try to be happy with what I can do each day and not set specific expectations onto myself. When I do, the success is shortlived and it creates disappointment. I strive to be the best version of myself every single day and that is the best goal of all. You can still live with goals, just not set yourself up for a fall. When I was in the dating world, there were guys who tried to put me up on a pedestal. I never liked that for two reasons. One, they were worshiping a glorified version of my true self. Two, what goes up must come down, and the taller the pedestal, the harder the fall. Creating unobtainable expectations or goals for yourself is the same thing. But this time, you hold both the disappointment of being let down and the pain of the fall.

Of course, you have to hold yourself to standards and set some goals. This isn't a get out of jail free philosophy. I actually think it frees you up to live with more passion. Speaking of passion, it's time for bed and I don't think I need to spell out anything more than that!!!

What is your relationship with goals and expectations? How passionately do you live your life?

P.S. As class ended tonight, I found the sweetest level of relaxation that I probably have ever had in the relaxation pose. Looooooved it!

Praise for the path

2010-05-13T20:23:00.012-05:00

I pondered an interesting revelation the other morning on my way into work. I can remember about a year ago when I first heard of green monsters and Kris Carr. I totally understood why she took the path she did, ate the foods she did, and really loved and adored her outlook and vibrancy. I couldn't in my wildest dreams imagine how she sacrificed all the "good" foods to force herself to eat only healthy food day in and day out. I thought it must get miserable. I also assumed it had to be a full time job to prepare all the healthy specialized foods.

It really made me laugh to reflect back on that. I wake up every morning with a grumbly tummy that craves my daily green monster brekkie. My favorite desk lunch on earth is a whole grain pita with hummus, kale, broccoli, and carrots. I know have ZERO desire to eat meat, fast food, donuts, and many other unhealthy foods. I have even been craving less chocolate lately!!!!!!! I NEVER knew that was possible!

As I continue to learn more about nutrition and what food works best with my body, the changes continue. I am a dairy junkie no more and have learned that "not all money is good money" also refers to free food. Not all free food is good food... some of the cheap unhealthy junk just needs to be left on the counter.

I'll continue to enjoy my green monster every morning and the inexplicably happy feeling my tummy feels after getting filled with all those nutrients. I'll continue to munch my pita while my coworkers pack on the BBQ. I can really truly honestly testify to anyone that you CAN love eating healthy. You have to give it a little time, but it really is true.

Oh and I can promise you that it is nothing close to a full time job. I have a full time+ job and a million other things on my plate. I still manage the veggie path every day and I have my morning monster down to a science. It is totally do-able. Plus think about how much faster and easier it is to eat raw... no cook time at all!

Did you have any beliefs that you personally disproved as you continued your path in life? What foods can you happily eat day in and day out? What cravings fell by the wayside as you ate better?

Yogalicious

2010-05-12T22:22:00.000-05:00

I got my OM on tonight! I saw a bulletin listing for a yoga class nearby and decided to take the plunge. I've done yoga on and off for most of my entire life. When I was a wee little lass, my mom did yoga. I used to find it sooo hilarious that my mom would have to struggle to get the poses because it was so easy for me to contort my little body into the positions. My favorite (very modified) yoga move was to run at a breakneck speed down the hall that ended in my parents' room and launch myself into a headstand on their bed. I considered it gymnastic yoga, my special hybrid.

Over the years, I forgot about yoga. I would return to it from time to time, but had never actually taken a class. I had an old yoga book from the '70s and DVDs up until tonight. I have to say I really liked taking the class. It was a small class and everyone was older than me. I could do some poses better than others and some worse. The teacher wasn't too handsy, but did offer correction and detailed directions on how to do things correctly.

The hour flew by and I felt strong and accomplished at the end. I loved NOT being in control of what poses are done, not knowing what we're doing next, and not being sure if I'd ever tried the pose before or not. I can be kind of a control freak and was very nervous walking in not knowing what to expect. While I found a parking spot I told myself that I was just going to surrender to the experience. If everyone was more advanced than me, if I had to get corrected on every pose, if they seemed unwelcoming, or anything else negative, that was ok. I was there to let everything go and to learn. It was oddly empowering to be out of control. I definitely plan to go back!

Let's see, things have been pretty good lately. I'm taking better care of myself and getting closer to the healthy amount of sleep each night. I am on bottle #2 of toxin free castile soap for my hair. That saga continues but I'm very optimistic that this shampoo gets along better with my hair. I'm whittling down my real life to-do list. I'm eating delicious vegetarian foods.

What have you been up to lately? Are you taking good care of yourself? What has been your best outcome from stepping out of your comfort zone? Do you like challenging yourself like that or do you like staying in your safe cocoon?

Checking in

2010-05-07T00:32:00.000-05:00

Just a super quick update.

Still working on my hair. Still working out. Still eating healthy. A little website change is in the works. More to come on that as the changes become apparent.

Life is still good!

Just finished some healthy online shopping for protein powder and more toxin-free shampoo. Also looked up more home remedy hair treatments. I know this is mainly about food and not hair, but they still use pantry items so I think it kind of works with a little stretch of the imagination. I will report back on them as I get the chance to try them.

I still love you guys and haven't forgotten you for a second. I had to pull back and do a little TLC, though. Adequate sleep kept giving way to blogging so I hit a wall where I had to recuperate. Other than work purposes, I think it's been a couple weeks since I've even been on the computer. I really kind of took a technology detox for awhile. I have to say that even though I missed you and wondered what I was missing for your sites, I really enjoyed using the computer and phone WAY less than usual.

I'll elaborate more later, but it's late and I have some hair to wash. xoxo!

Hair progress

2010-04-20T23:54:00.000-05:00

I gotta say... I'm not sure that if I hadn't started the process of transitioning my hair onto toxin-free shampoo I could do it again.

In case you haven't heard the hype, the chemicals and surfactants in regular shampoos are supposed to be bad for you. For the past couple years, I have dealt with frustrating scalp issues. I tried to note the circumstances that lead up to a rash on my hairline. I tried different shampoos and ultimately concluded that it was my body's reaction to stress. I certainly felt stressed when I had these painful little rash spots along the hairline just above my temples. I didn't necessarily notice the stress beforehand, but I definitely did once they appeared.

Several months ago, I learned about the potential issues (including allergies and rashes) that can occur with standard shampoos. I still hadn't learned everything I needed to know to make an educated decision, so I did the best I could. At that point I knew that the sodium lauryl/laureth sulfates were bad news. I went to the beauty supply store and combed the aisles for my best option. I ended up selecting a tea lauryl sulfate with tea tree oils. I love tea tree oil because it feels so good on the scalp, so this sounded like the best choice to me. It worked well for awhile, then I got another breakout. Since I thought it was stress, I figured it wasn't the shampoo and bought another few bottles.

Then I learned more and found EWG's Skindeep website. I learned about castile soap and that the best shampoos don't act like the typical ones-- they don't suds and bubble. They also don't do it all the first time, so you truly lather, rinse, repeat.

I researched shampoos and hair treatments; finally I selected a gentle, scalp-calming shampoo. I found information on the Healing-Scents website for a treatment that can speed the adjustment period. I'm using that combo religiously, but I'm STILL not through this yet!

If anybody else is bracing to go through a similar transition, here is the process that gives me the most normal hair days. If I can never get back to good hair days, I won't continue all this drama long term. I'll keep you posted to let you know if there's ever light at the end of the tunnel.

Hair Transition Formula, a.k.a. Hair Shots

I adapted "The volcano" method slightly from Healing-Scents to make it possible to do on my own. I've had to use it every time I shampoo for a few weeks now.

If any of you have the cheap plastic take home drink shakers from a restaurant (like this), it's a great way to get this process done on your own. Plus it's super classy to take your drink shaker into the shower with you.

Put 2 shots of apple cider vinegar and 2 shots of water into the cup. Swish them together and put the strainer piece over it.
Shake baking soda into the shot glass and fill with enough water to stir it into a liquid solution (about even to the level of the baking soda). I would say 1/3 full is right.
If you don't have such a classy container for your concoction, feel free to improvise freely with your glass and barware until you figure out what works best for you. Use 1/2 cup ACV with 1/2 cup water.

Wet hair. Shake the baking soda into your hair. Use a little at a time to work it all around your scalp.
Tilt head WAY back and slowly pour the ACV mixture onto your hair. It will fizz and bubble, so don't let it head south into your eyes!
Once it's all worked through, rinse it all out.
Do your lather, rinse, repeat routine with the castile or toxin-free shampoo.
Afterward, you can use nothing, a toxin-free conditioner, or another ACV/water rinse.
Rinse out whatever you used and pray that your hair is manageable enough to get through your day!

I am truly an optimistic person, so I'm still excited to see what will happen when I'm FINALLY done with the transition. I just hope it happens soon!! I also hope that "normal hair" with toxin-free shampoo is similar to normal hair with the SLS sudsy shampoos.

Here are a few pics of my hair from Easter weekend. I had blowdried and straightened my hair, and this was the best it got.

Sorry the pic is a little fuzzy. I wore out my arms trying to get a clear mirror pic and this was the best I had. It reminds me of stringy teenager hair. :(

The scalp doesn't look too bad. My hair feels like it's coated in wax.

My hair looks a little better now, and is more manageable (aka, clean looking) as well. It still feels like it's coated in wax, though. If I used styling products, this might be fantastic since it provides its own adhesion. I just want to have it move naturally, though!

So there ya go. All the details.

What do you think? Am I nuts for trying to get my hair and scalp off the suds?! Would you ever consider going toxin-free for your hair products? If you've done this already, do you EVER get past this waxy hair point?!??

Let's try this again

2010-04-17T20:37:00.001-05:00

Sorry I've been gone. It's time for a little fess up honesty time...

I've been burning the candle from both ends lately. For awhile, I could do it, but after the stress of many things compounded with unexpectedly hosting in-laws for a week, I hit the wall. I couldn't get enough sleep because they were up all hours. I couldn't work out, which added to the exhaustion and crankiness. I have had to eat out for about 2 weeks straight, which I actually hate. Many of the small things that were stable in my day-to-day were changed. While not everything that changed was bad and several were long-term good things, the temporary was a lot of added stress.

This past week, I was no longer able to juggle everything. I would finish work, head to the next restaurant, come home and crash on the couch until hubby dragged me to the bed. I would wake up feeling wiped and do it all over again. I slept late this morning, and I'm trying to be more cautious about what I do this weekend so I can recuperate. Blogging may make a slow return to my life. I want it to always be enjoyable and fun, so if it would be just another item on the to do list, I won't post that night. I know that many of the stresses are going to improve with time, so I can go slow until then.

I want to reassure everyone out there who hasn't given up on reading me that I will still be posting and reading as time allows. I still care very much about all of you. And I think it's also important to reassure all of you that there were no major tragedies in my life, nothing disastrous happened, my life, marriage, and outlook on life is still a very happy and upbeat one. I just test my limits sometimes and have to re-balance my priorities.

So here are the not too exciting highlights for you (besides what I mentioned above):

I am almost through the hair detox and onto the other side now. I had no idea how frustrated and moody I could be by having continually gross and oily-looking hair. I would wash and blowdry my hair only for it to look like I was channeling Alanis Morissette in the 90s. When you have to look professional everyday, that is a big aggravation indeed. Thankfully, I had one good hair day a couple days ago. I am hopeful that with one more shock treatment, it will be ready for a normal routine with the toxin-free shampoo. I have a post planned with more on this.

I am trying to tackle a few things that are important to me just a little bit at a time. I am being more conscious about my stress levels and not letting myself sweat stuff that isn't vitally important.

I realized that when I bring my lunch to work (aka no business lunch), I am almost always "raw until dinner." I really feel good and I L-O-V-E LOVE my breakfast smoothie. It is so calming to my tummy and so filling. Plus it is super healthy and makes me happy.

I also realized that I am probably dairy sensitive and am contemplating vegan as a result. The week leading up to our hosting duties, I really did not have any dairy, which kind of cleansed my body of the effects. Once we hosted and were eating out for every meal but breakfast, I had a meal with cheese for dinner. The next morning I woke up with a bad bloaty tummy ache. A light bulb went off for me at that moment. I used to wake up with that feeling FREQUENTLY, but I never knew why. I never even considered that it could be dairy. Maybe it was fiber, or getting too hungry during the night, or having something too rich and fatty, but I NEVER considered dairy because I was raised on it my entire life. I thought my brother was a little loony for believing he magically turned lactose intolerant at 30. Not being used to ordering without cheese yet, I had another couple meals with dairy ingredients over the past couple weeks. I noticed a correlation between those meals and tummy aches the next morning. So I think I'm onto something important here.

Irish found very thin-soled New Balance shoes for me to start using as I transition into barefoot walking then running. If I stick with it, then I'll probably get some of the specialized shoes to use. On a sadder note, the trash to treasure treadmill was a dud. There was a broken part on it that is no longer made. Oh well. We may consider buying a treadmill or elliptical after awhile.

This morning was so peaceful and relaxing that I savored every second I could get. We slept with the window open and the ceiling fan going because there was a cool breeze. We woke up to a light rain early this morning. None of the screaming neighbor kids were fighting outside, so we just heard the rain, the breeze, and the birds. It reminded me of an anniversary weekend we spent at a B&B on the lake. It was so peaceful and amazing that it felt sacred.

What's the best thing that's happened to you lately? For any of you with a treadmill or elliptical, what's your preference and why? When you notice you're off balance, what do you do to realign your life?

Oh yes, I almost forgot! Averie has a necklace giveaway, and Katie has a shopping spree giveaway!

Til next time!

2010-04-11T23:38:00.000-05:00

Our out of town guests just left. They're the reason I've been SO scarce. I'll be back to posting tomorrow.

It's been hard having our lives interrupted like that. I value some "me time" like getting to blog, read all of your blogs, work out, check our DVR, get ready for work in peace, and get ready for bed uninterrupted.

A few tips for those of you planning to be houseguests in the near future:

If the homeowner is trying to work out, please let them do their thing in peace. It may be the only thing holding their sanity together.
Once the bedroom door is shut for the night, consider yourself on your own.
If they happen to be vegetarian or vegan, please abstain from offering your leftover chicken takeout to them multiple times. If you offer once and they decline, I will assume you simply forgot their eating habits. But after that, you just appear to be testing them... in their own house... which seems rude.
No matter how much you love the homeowner, try to give them a few minutes of peace in their own house. Staying with them for every waking minute can be too much time together even for married couples who chose to live under the same roof.

I think I mentioned the last time that I hosted guests that I usually clean thoroughly after our guests leave. I like getting the dirty sheets, towels, glasses, and plates done and put away so I can feel back to normal. I started the process, but it's late and most of that will keep til tomorrow.

So for now, goodnight. Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!

Question time!
Do you like hosting houseguests? Are you the frequent crash pad for family/friends? What was the best thing you did all weekend? I know it's weird, but my favorite part of the weekend was clearing all the dead plants from last year out of the backyard and prepping the flower beds. I also settled some reorganization/decorating dilemmas that arose last week. Love that feeling of accomplishment!

Dinner wishes

2010-04-06T18:29:00.000-05:00

I'm just sending out a super quick post because we have guests in town. I was supposed to have a little prep time to get ready, but um, plans changed and no such luck.

That's ok we can roll with it. I'm starving, though, so I hope I can get everyone's butt in gear pronto!

If I can make a request, this is absolutely what I want for dinner tonight! YUMMMMMM! I'm craving it! What will I actually get to eat? Who knows.

Ok, off to corral the hungry mobs into dining.

Easter frock

2010-04-05T21:50:00.000-05:00

So I mentioned this weekend on a friend's page that I would be the one at church who wasn't wearing a new dress. She called it a "frock" which made me giggle, so without further ado I will show off my not-new but still cute Easter frock.

So this is what I wore to church yesterday. I felt very pretty and flouncy, and loved pulling out a dress, since I rarely wear them. I have a handful of cute, pretty dresses that I just cycle through for fancy occasions. Weddings, family reunions, Easter, Christmas, company parties, etc-- I just select one and go. Who besides you remembers that you've worn the dress before anyway? The paparazzi don't come after me so there's no wicked tabloid commentary about it.

Did you have a good Easter/weekend? Anything fancy or pretty low key? Are you a self-pic person? In what clothing do you feel your foxiest?

Barefoot running

2010-04-04T22:44:00.000-05:00

HAPPY EASTER!

As a little kid, I didn't have much more physical activity than playing with my friends. I was skinny. Some of my fellow skinny kid friends were put on uber-fatty diets to force weight gain. Thankfully my parents never followed that advice, but I wasn't in cheerleading, gymnastics, track, basketball, or volleyball. Looking back some of that makes me sad. I would have loved to be in sports. I could have excelled in things where my small frame was an asset. But we do better when we know better, and at that time those two options were the best that parents knew to do. So cest la vie.

But one of the beautiful things about life and growing up is that you can do what you want. Even though I'm still thin, my cardio endurance could GREATLY improve! I hate having poor endurance and have been trying to improve it slowly but surely. It's baby steps for sure.

I love the idea of being a runner, but right now I'm still in the fast walker stages. My husband's path is very different. He was the super athlete in high school, but he stopped all forms of exercise after graduation. After 14 years, he's at the fast walker stage right there with me as he tries to work off the buddha belly.

[source]

When I heard about barefoot running, I was intrigued. I started reading about it. I quickly learned it was pretty controversial, but I didn't buy into the negative nellies. The idea totally made sense to me. We were made to run, we were made to go barefoot. I started noticing that you do walk differently when you're barefoot. Shoes really do make you roll heel-to-toe, which seems to aggravate the arch in my experience.

So I think I'm going to pursue barefoot running. I started yesterday and today with walking. Because my neighborhood has issues with broken glass strewn about, I am wearing thin flat soled shoes. I have experimented for a few weeks with different shoes to see what works well. I try to start hobbies with minimal upstart because I can go off course easily and don't want the money pit if I don't stick with it.

My hot pink clearance sale Simples seem to work the best so far. I'll be looking into cheapy flat soled lace ups before I graduate into running because I don't want to step out of the shoe as I go.

If I stick with that and enjoy it, then I'll look into Vibram KSO's or BFT's huaraches.

I am so lucky to have a sweet hubby who is always supportive of me, so he's already agreed to the shoe investment once I feel I've reached that point. He thinks I'm kind of nuts for buying into the idea, but he'll support me in it if that's what I want to do. I think that's an element of a good partnership. Who knows, he ventured into vegetarianism with me, so maybe he'll end up being my running buddy after all! There's def no pressure on that one, though. You gotta do whatever exercise you enjoy. In the meantime, I'll love the time I spend with my walking buddy.

Have you ever heard of barefoot running? What are your thoughts and why? Do you ever pay attention to the way you walk? When you get passionate about something, do you burn bright and then burn out, or do you burn steady? I can def be guilty of burning bright then burning out because there is so much goodness in life to try that it's hard to stick with just one pursuit! With other things, though, I do burn steady and form new habits.

Roots and wings

2010-04-04T01:14:00.006-05:00

Happy almost Easter everyone!

Grounded and Happy

I know I've mentioned how important I think perspective is, but I think that's what keeps us grounded. What do you do to keep yourself grounded? I would consider myself a pretty grounded person. I try not to get too far out of balance with anything. I think that's important. You have to take care of yourself and all that you value.

[source]

I tend to gauge how grounded I am with my level of happiness. If I get grumpy, cranky, testy, short-fused, I try to reel it back and do something that I value to get back in line. Sometimes I just need down time to do nothing and veg. When the well runs dry, I feel like I have nothing more to give.

This past week, blogging got bumped several days due to sheer exhaustion. Too many things in real life were slowly grating away, and I needed a little break. On those days, posting would have been just another chore to get off my list. I always want it to be enjoyable and to share myself in a meaningful way, so I just abstained. I'm back and feeling much better now, though!

(The title is from Sweet Home Alabama, which was playing in the background tonight. You can have roots and wings. That's a pretty great definition of grounded!)

Exercise

I worked in quite a bit of exercise today. It felt fantastic!!! My body feels loose, relaxed, refreshed, and strong. I dragged my tired butt out of bed and started with stretches. From stretching, I moved into muscle strengthening. I do as much as possible without machinery or equipment. I worked my abs, arms, legs, and pushed myself further on the splits. I need to try isolating the upper half of the stretch (I think it's the groin and hip flexor area) because I'm hitting a point where my knees are tweaking to go lower. After breakfast, we went walking. I can tell things are blooming by my allergies, but we made our whole loop without a niagara nose from either of us.

Food

I had a tasty breakfast smoothie this morning after my long workout. Almond milk, flax seed, 1/2 avocado, spinach, nooch, cocoa powder, hemp protein powder, banana, apple, cinnamon, natural PB, and a tiny bit of clove/ginger/nutmeg. It was delish! Irish gave it a teensy little taste and said it wasn't bad but it had something in it that he didn't like. True, but I wouldn't tell him what it was. If you never give foods a try because you think you don't like them, then you can't expand your horizons. You may not like spinach in plain form, but I promise I can figure out a way to fix it where you like it as long as you don't know it's there.

I also had occasion to try coconut butter on cranberry orange muffins tonight for dessert. Divine. They were kind of dry, so I slathered the coconut butter on top. They magically became much creamier and tastier. I'm in love!

Hair

Still detoxing my hair from all the grime. It's gross and frustrating. Hopefully it will be over soon, though.

How do you keep yourself grounded? Do you feel refreshed by exercise or is it just a necessary evil to you? Are you willing to stretch your food horizons?

Irish and I were talking earlier today about how much muscle looks good for a woman. What do you think? As I build more muscle, I like seeing it more and more. That visible sign of progress, those tight abs, that's sexy to me!

You say you want a revolution!

2010-04-03T01:03:00.000-05:00

Sorry it's been a few days. Sleep deprivation is a b!tch and I had to get through the work week. Back in the game now, though!

Grocery Finds

I am rarely the one who grocery shops because I always find new tasty treasures. Today I actually had to get stuff on my way home from work, and as anticipated, I found some surprising things. After the initial shock of noticing some crazies wandering our neighborhood grocery, I dug into a couple fun sections to see what I could find. Their cocoa powder was a swing and a miss. Plain cocoa powder and nothing more. No extra dark, nothing. I'll have to look again later.

The grain section made me happy, though. Milled flax seed to use as an egg substitute. Tons of alternate grains to the plain old flour, whole wheat flour, and oatmeal. They had barley, millet, bulgur... all kinds of fun stuff! I only left with the milled flax seed because I wanted to decide what I'd use the grain for before I bought it.

In general, I was just proud that the local grocery store had some healthy options. Little steps forward to make me smile! :)

Food Revolution

We watched Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution tonight. It was pretty interesting. I was really shocked about what really mattered to the RD overseeing the project. Seemed like she had lost her sense of what really mattered along the way. I was lucky to be raised in a family where we valued health. We made the best choices as we knew how. My mom baked french fries instead of frying them, and we very rarely even ate them. We always had veggies on our plates. I got brown bagged lunches so I never had to eat the pizza that always reminded me of puke on a plate.

[source]

One thing that I've already learned in my few years on this planet is that you will continually learn more about nutrition. If you decide that you learned all there was to learn 20 years before, you can guarantee that you'll be wrong.

It was also a little sad to me that they couldn't raise the $80K needed after the kids pulled off such a great performance and two of the girls cried. I realize that it was a big order to fill in one night and that each invitee would have to shell out a grand, but I kinda figured they'd make it happen. Overall we liked the show even if it was frustrating to see what an uphill battle it was just to feed kids something healthy.

Have you noticed improvements in your local grocery store's stock? Do you think Jamie Oliver can really turn things around?

Dumpster diving hippie

2010-03-30T22:12:00.000-05:00

Oh my goodness lovies, I've missed you all! Sorry I've been MIA for a couple days!

Things are going well here. I've had a few changes in the last couple days. Exciting things in the works. One was a fantastic Reduce, Reuse, Recycle moment. Hubster was on his way out the door Sunday and returned soon afterward with quite a racket.

He found a treadmill on the curb. We aren't a home with much disposable income, so we have a long-term wishlist. A treadmill or elliptical machine has been on the wishlist for a few years now. He plugged it in and it worked! A 4 inch part has to be replaced, but according to le google it may just cost us shipping because it's a common flaw.

Another change is that I'm taking the plunge into natural shampoo. So far, I'm kind of disgruntled. I've heard that is VERY common. I also think I know why hippies always looked like they could use a shower. My hair has been looking like I went without a shower and lived under a bridge for the past couple weeks. I'm not one to give up easily, though, so I'm still trying to give it a chance. But if it takes a month for my hair to "change over," I don't think I'll make it.

Food food food... Irish made me some delicious butternut squash and was even sweet enough to snap a few pics for me. My plan is to post that tomorrow. Otherwise, my food has been pretty boring lately.

Exercise... I've been loving the extra daylight in the evening. It's allowed us to take family walks together after work, which has been great for de-stressing. And of course I'm super excited about the treadmill! I can't wait!! Irish has exercised 2 days in a row now. That's happy news to me! Although he sure knows how to drive me nuts sometimes, I love the guy and would like to keep him around for a few more decades. Oh, and there's also the fringe benefit. Let's be honest ladies, who would turn down the chance to admire some muscles on their man?!

I don't feel like I'm very exciting today now that I've actually written it all down. Now I have to go wash my hair. Literally. So I don't buzz it all off and start over. Actually, that's not a bad idea at this point...

Would you ever consider snagging somebody's trash to be your new treasure? What's the best trash-to-treasure find you've ever had? Do you feel that health extends into the beauty products you use?

Hummus for your face

2010-03-27T01:26:00.000-05:00

So the long awaited hummus recipe. It's tangy and zesty and yum!

As you've probably learned by now, my recipes are generally an ingredient list rather than precise measures. This one is no different.

Kick You in the Teeth Hummus

Hummus (plain, pine nut, or red pepper are probably best)
Spicy dijon mustard
Dried minced onion
Garlic powder
Black pepper
Basil
Savory all purpose

Mix all ingredients together. (I didn't think to take a pic once it was mixed together because it just looked like hummus.)

Dear God this is good! I thought I loved hummus, but you kick it up a few notches and it gets even better.

This may be my new absolute favorite sauce/condiment. I slathered it on both sides of the pita from yesterday, and I licked it off my fingers. There's no shame when it's that good!

What's your favorite condiment/sauce? Do you like lots of spices?

Keep it in persepective, pita please!

2010-03-25T22:09:00.000-05:00

Bad play on words, check. I think it was kinda creative.

Moving on to the perspective part first. Then we'll launch into the food.

Perspective

So you'll be happy to know that I got a little more sleep last night and I didn't chew through the walls today. I already felt so much better just not putting all that unnecessary junk into my body. When you're that exhausted and your tank is low, you don't care what you use to fuel your body as long as it helps you hobble along. That's not good!

Perspective is an interesting thing. Usually when you need it the most is when you lose it all. This week I have witnessed several people lose all sense of perspective because they have let their priorities get skewed way off kilter. It's such a pointless waste of energy, and you often neglect something important when you shift priorities because you forget what really mattered. Keep it in perspective and you're much more prepared to tackle things as they arise and know what matters and what doesn't. Plus you're way less likely to do a metaphorical face plant. I'm not trying to be preachy. This week has just highlighted the importance of keeping perspective, so I thought I'd spread the word.

Now for the pita portion of this broadcast.

Sweet fry pita

What do you do when you have leftover sweet fries, but they've been reheated enough that they're a little tough to eat by themselves? You blend an idea to make a sweet potato sammich with a salad pita and the existing fries. Don't worry, this story ends well. Here's what you'll need:

Leftover sweet fries (This batch included plenty of noochy goodness)
Whole grain pita
Spinach
Broccoli
Carrots
Hummus (specific version will be tomorrow's post)

Grill or oven heat your sweet fries back to a toasty temperature. While they heat up, break your pita in half to get inside. If it's brittle like mine are, go ahead and separate the pocket seam to allow plenty of room to pile high. Spread on the hummus first, since it will help the veggies stick a little. Then start piling. I like to chop my broccoli and carrots into little pieces so I can really pack them on. When you get a big mound of veggies on 2 pita halves, cover them with the sweet fries, hold in place, and put the other sides of the pita over them.

Oh sweet vegan goodness this stuff is amazing!

You really have to try this combo, it is so good. Plus if you want a really amazing souped up hummus, that's coming tomorrow. The next time I make sweet fries, I will probably set aside a couple pita-fulls just to repeat this sammich.

Do you like to get creative with leftovers? Are you good at keeping things in perspective? What's your favorite way to eat sweet potatoes?

Don't eat without sleep.

2010-03-24T23:50:00.000-05:00

So I'm afraid this is going to be a super quick 'n' dirty post. You'll see why in a sec.

First, though, I'm so happy to hear that you vicariously enjoyed my spa day! It really was SOOO nice to relax and have a little "me time." In case any of you care, the budget meeting between me and Excel was canceled, and the spa day came to a screeching halt by the dreaded....

....

phone call from the mother-in-law!!!! Dum duh duh duh! Yes, she caught me just before I got to sink my teeth into dinner and I wasn't freed until an hour later. I think she's learned that she can only catch me by phone if she calls when Irish is out of town. Otherwise, I always hand the phone to him.

Anywho, on to today. Which really started last night. I had a LAAAAAATE into the night work function, so it was about 1am before bedtime came. The 6am alarm came way too early and I felt like a school bus ran right over my head. As the day rolled on, I noticed that I was inhaling any sweet, fatty, junky, unhealthy food that I could grab. Maybe a year ago that wasn't such a stretch from my daily ways, but now it's so very unlike my daily routine! I'd heard people say that you eat worse when you're sleep deprived, but now I can attest 100% that it's the honest truth. And now with that, I need to catch a few Z's. Tomorrow I should be back to my regular blogging and reading routines. Looking forward to catching up with you all again! :)

For you married ladies out there, how is your relationship with your in-laws? Who else has noticed that they devour half the city when sleep deprived?!

Spa Day

2010-03-21T17:10:00.001-05:00

I'm coming to you live from the OA Home Spa.

Yes that's right, ladies and gents, I've enjoyed all the finest spa treatments that my home has to offer! After a relaxing morning of dawdling, catching portions of edited-for-TV versions of movies, grooming the dog, coaxing the dog to pee in the winter wonderland outside, and watching her work her way through the food puzzle breakfast, it was time for a little me time.

I started with an ACV hair rinse, followed by a microderm abrasion session. I was then coated in a luxurious moisturizer from head to toe and enjoyed my home pedicure treatments. The kitchen staff then allowed me to prepare a large cup of my favorite hot cocoa made with almond milk. I then moved the seat warmer (BB), and relaxed with my warm mug of liquid chocolate.

Ahhh, life is grand! I plan to catch a little light internet reading, then attend the mandatory and less spa-like budget meeting between myself and a spreadsheet. Dinner at the spa will be a salad pita featuring spinach, broccoli, carrots, hummus, and whole grain pita. Dessert is leftover chocolate mousse cake with added raspberries for decadence.

But before I go, I thought I would share the details on the Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse.

Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse

1 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar (if it's already diluted), probably 1/2 tbsp if undiluted
2-3 drops tea tree oil
1 cup filtered water

I placed all the ingredients in a salad dressing glass so I could drizzle it down my scalp and hair easier than if it were just in a glass. You could also put it in a spray bottle. Take mixture and a wide tooth comb into the shower.

Shampoo hair as usual, then comb out hair with wide tooth comb. Tilt your head back and apply the ACV hair rinse along the scalp line and throughout the hair until everything is soaked (scalp and hair) and the mixture is gone. Again comb through hair. After waiting several minutes, quickly rinse hair just a little, and you're done. Let hair dry naturally.

This rinse should help your scalp and hair. You won't need conditioner afterward. (I was skeptical since I've needed conditioner for my entire life, but you truly don't need it.)

I took before and after pictures of my hair, although I'm not sure you can really see a difference besides the straightened vs. wild looks.

Before:

After:

Sadly for all of you, the spa is not currently open to the public. However, if you'd like to partake in the budget meeting sessions on my behalf, I'll be more than happy to allow you to become the pro bono CPA for this organization. Happy Sunday everyone!

Does anybody else use pantry products for other purposes? I have several multipurpose items, like vinegar for cleaning produce and the kitchen, ACV and epsom salts are good for a relaxing bath, tea tree oil in the washer for an extra cleaning boost, ACV hair rinse, safflower oil is good for really dry skin... Tons of great uses! What are your favorite home spa treatments?

Working out the kinks

2010-03-20T10:51:00.000-05:00

No post yesterday because it was bloggie maintenance time. Added IntenseDebate and CommentLuv. Will get back into the groove this afternoon after I work out all the kinks!

My chicks didn't hatch

2010-03-18T22:42:00.000-05:00

So I have to confess something embarrassing.

My giveaway fell through.

Sad, I know. Disappointing. I counted my chicks before they hatched, and then they never hatched.

It was going to be a Celestial Seasonings Wellness Kit. Doubly disappointing to me because I love and adore the company. I've loved them ever since I was a little kid and had one of their old Sleepytime Tea tins (an actual metal tin!).

[Source]

I stored my little ~~junk~~ treasures in it and thought the illustration of the Sleepytime Bear all tuckered out was the most adorable little thing.

Celestial Seasonings was kind enough to send me a little consolation prize, though. I get to try some of the teas, but won't have one to share or the book, the mug, etc. that came with the kit. If I could foot the bill to try duplicating the kit for a giveaway, I would, but times are tight 'round these parts.

Oh well, we just roll with the punches and move on. So let's see what goodness the mail brought me today.

FedEx? We like FedEx! Let's see what's inside...

A tower of teas! (You could probably tell that was it, right?) I'd say that's a pretty nice consolation prize. Look at all the fun flavors. Goji berry pomegranate? Sleepytime vanilla? Yes, please! That ginseng energy is going to the office to cure a case of the Mondays. (one of the greatest movies ever, seriously.)

Officially, it's a gluten free kosher tower, which I know may be important to some of you.

They're environmentally conscious and believe in fair wages and ethical trading, which I know is also important to many of you (especially to me).

And always a little fun goodie for you while you wait for your water to heat...

Inspirational or uplifting quotes on every box. The little things like this make it seem like the company really puts thought into their products and acts consciously when making decisions.

While I am disappointed that I will not be able to share a fun giveaway with you, I am still excited to try 5 new flavors of CS. Hope you all have a wonderful evening!

Do you like tea? What flavors and brands are your favorites? Do those "little touches" from a company ever make you smile? I think my parents always had at least one box of CS in our kitchen growing up, so I feel comforted any time I fix some for myself.

G-edamame while they're hot!

2010-03-16T23:10:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for the great feedback about the garden! I'm glad to hear that others love gardening as much as us. It's also a little comforting to hear that we're not the only ones who poured all our blood, sweat, tears, and hopes into our garden only to get a couple measly fruits of our labor. Here's to hoping that this year will be a bumper crop!

I came home from a very long day at work tonight I had hoped to get home in time to go for a walk before dinner, but since it was dark by the time I came home, that wasn't going to happen. Instead I settled for Irish fixing dinner for us so I could just sit down and relax when I got home.

We tried our own made-at-home edamame tonight. I've had edamame several times at Japanese restaurants, but since Irish avoids sushi (and the restaurants that serve it) like the plague, he's never gotten to try it. We found a bag of shelled edamame at WF a couple weeks ago, so we bought it to give it a try. Overall, I would say that it was good. It kind of tasted like juicier lima beans because we didn't used any seasonings. Usually they are sprinkled with a savory seasoning like garlic, and I might do that if we make them again. Since Irish loves lima beans, he was pretty impressed with the edamame. Even better, we found it in the frozen veggies section at Target for about 1/2 the price.

[source]

The brown rice we ate with the edamame was less of a success. I came home to a horrific burnt smell. Clearly something went wrong with the ratio between rice and water, and there was a heaping pot full of burnt rice instead of a lovely side dish. In case anybody would like a review of burnt brown rice, Irish said it tasted like eating cigarettes. He spit out the one bite he tried.

Eh, c'est la vie. I cannot tell you what a huge improvement I've seen in my mood since we've gotten into spring weather and daylight past 5pm. I'm practically giddy about spring!

Do you like edamame? How much do you think the weather affects your mood?

Homegrown

2010-03-15T23:27:00.001-05:00

So yesterday we went for a lovely walk in the beautiful weather, then bought some tomatoes, peppers, and other fun stuff at the nursery. Plant shopping is probably my favorite kind of shopping!

We've grown our own fruits and veggies for the past few years with mixed results. Some things didn't grow, some things did, and usually what did grow was eaten first by birds, squirrels, or a certain fruit and veggie-loving pup. I think I got to eat two tomatoes last year and one pepper. Not exactly a banner year.

Who needs Snausages when an apple a day keeps the vet with the thermometer away?!

So this year, we're going to try something different. We've been container gardening up until now because we didn't trust the soil that we inherited with the house. The previous owner was an avid gardener, but seemed to be the king of DIY. We're pretty sure he rigged up his own wiring to his shed, he kept hundreds of jars of old nails and screws just in case, and we found pesticide laced ant traps and saltines stashed on top of the fridge. Kinda made us think twice about what he used on the soil.

After a couple years of treating everything organically and attempting to grow things in containers with minimal and expensive success, we're ready to test the uncharted ~~waters~~ soils. Irish is our head gardener, BB is second in line, and I'm the paranoid one scratching because I'm sure a bug bit me. In other words, Irish and BB enjoy gardening much more without me. Which is fine. They garden and report back to me on the progress. I inspect and supervise as necessary. At the end of last season, we (meaning Irish) created and prepped several plant beds and corrected soil problems around the yard. We are now in a good starting position to have a successful year.

So off to the store we went yesterday to pick out all the yummy sounding ~~food~~ fruits & veggies. We got bright lights swiss chard, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, onion chives, roman lavender, and strawberries. I tried several times to convince Irish that we should buy one of the two kale plants left. He wasn't biting and I was kind of disappointed. Granted I have no idea what it needs or if it continues to grow after you eat off all the leaves. But at least we knew it was organic! We love this local nursery that sells all kinds of plants and is totally organic. They're often cheaper than the big box stores, they're local grown, and you know that it's safe to eat the ~~food~~ plants because the store didn't pre-poison them for you.

We will also grow herbs when we're a little more into the season. Beyond that, we'll have to evaluate if there's space left in the garden for anything else. Since BB is such a veggie lover, we can't plant certain things that are potentially poisonous to pets. Two years ago she ate all but one garlic before we caught her! Thankfully she didn't get sick, but I've read that the poison can accumulate (like mercury for humans), so we're being cautious.

Do you garden? What are your favorite things to plant? What else do you think we should add to our garden (feel free to support my cry for kale!)? Do you enjoy the outdoorsy goodness that Spring brings? I don't think I ever realized how incredible spring is until this year. I used to say that summer was my favorite season, but spring is quickly closing in! I was also thinking that people should wait until spring to start their NY resolutions. It's the season of growth and renewal, so why not?!

Power protein wrap

2010-03-14T15:21:00.001-05:00

We took another family walk today with Irish, BB, and me. It's so great to enjoy the beautiful weather and exercise together!

Afterward, I stretched and made up my own little protein wrap.

Protein Wrap

Spinach or whole wheat tortilla
Natural nut butter (I used natural PB)
Sunflower seeds
Little dab of local organic honey

Pretty self-explanatory here. Layer the nut butter, sunflower seeds, and honey on one side of the tortilla, then roll into a wrap.

Open wide! It tastes delicious, keeps your taste buds interested, and has some chew and crunch to it. Plus it's naturally got good proteins going on without any powders.

Well, I'm off to enjoy the rest of the day with my awesome lil' family. Two days of weekend just aren't enough, but we're going to make the most of it! Spring is in the air and I'm so excited!

What's your favorite part of the weekend? Do you like planning the weekend in advance or just taking it as it comes?

Sweet fry

2010-03-13T22:10:00.003-06:00

Irish and I made homemade fries tonight for dinner. Two sweet potatoes for me, two russets for him.

Homemade fries are a beautiful thing. They are baked, not fried. They are salt-free if you make them that way, which we do. They pack a lot more flavor than any I've had at a restaurant or commercially made, especially my sweet potato fries. They're a pretty guilt-free indulgence into a traditionally guilty food.

So here's the skinny on making them for yourself.

Sweet Potato Fries

2 average size sweet potatoes, cleaned and peeled
Lots of your fave spices. We used savory all-purpose, garlic pepper, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and dried basil flakes. Some were also dusted with nutritional yeast (nooch).

Heat oven to 450*F. Slice potatoes into wedges and lay onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle spices over the tray. Cook for 10 minutes at a time. The cook time varies based on the thickness of the fries; thicker fries take longer to cook. In our experience, you'll need at least 25 minutes, but it's wise to check in frequently unless you like burned fries.

The regular fries are pretty much the same recipe. We added some red chili pepper flakes and spread the nooch on a little thicker. In hindsight, we would probably cook the regular fries on a lower heat for longer to get the right crunchiness.

They were very yummy to munch our way through. We have a few left to eat with dinner tomorrow too.

Other updates for this weekend:

We took a lazy approach to today since it's been a killer busy week. Then we took a nice long family walk through the neighborhood. It was so energizing! I think I get the winter blah's because it's cold, gets dark early, and all I can do is bundle under blankets and wait it out. Getting out in the sunlight in short sleeves was so awesome! I came home feeling so much more energetic. The pup had a little spring in her step too.

We also tried a food puzzle with BB for dinner tonight. She doesn't really like playing with toys because she would rather be with people. She seemed to love the exercise so much during our walk, though, that I figured it might be fun for her to work for her food a little.

"Where's my food mommy??"

So I put her food inside a Kong-style toy, let her smell it, and then made her figure out the rest. At first she pouted, but she really loves her food so eventually she started working to get the food. She ended up loving it and got so excited about playing around. It was awesome to see her having so much fun.

Do you like healthifying traditional foods? Do you get the winter blues? If you have a dog, do you take absolute joy in them? Without a doubt I have the best dog on earth and can't get enough of her!

P.S. Averie's got a cookbook giveaway going.

Stress response

2010-03-11T22:39:00.000-06:00

So I need a personal post here. It's time to dish a little.

Stress has been getting the best of me lately. In reality, I'm doing pretty good compared to how I used to handle stress. The former me was a big ball of anxiety in the pit of my stomach, getting fed with all my energy, some of my confidence, and a lot of unhealthy foods. I would come home completely sucked of all energy, feeling like I had run a marathon, and just wanting to flop into bed. I'd scavenge for sweets, crave sleep, and not even give exercise a passing thought.

NOW, though, I feel like I do much better. I am eating better consistently and that doesn't change drastically with stress. I still seek out sweets, but my sweet tooth has shrunk drastically from what it used to be. I think I'm avoiding the big anxiety ball, and it's certainly not taking any of my confidence away! I'm feeling calmer than I have in a long time and that's a great feeling. I exercise a lot more than before and am still trying to ease into more.

I work in a very fast-paced, high stress job, so managing stress is imperative. Nobody is impervious to stress, and you can see it in any and all of my colleagues at some point in time. It's just a part of our world and it's not going to go away, so you have to manage the best you can. As a result, I continually try to handle stress better. It has been more stressful than normal for pretty much all of 2010 so far, so I'm having to fight a little harder than usual to combat it. Holding strong, though.

One of the most remarkable things about our bodies is that they are gifted at healing, adapting, and dispersing the good and bad we do to them. And usually our bodies are much more forgiving than we as people tend to be! You learn a few ways to adapt and manage stress better, and the whole stress reaction system in your body is suddenly kinder and gentler on you.

I just heard an interesting way to look at the body today. There are many doors that can be opened into a medical or physical problem with the body. Once one door is opened, the healing process can begin and the rest unravels faster. Big or small, these problems can all be helped by taking the first step.

What are your biggest stress responses? What are your biggest stress fixers? Do you believe all aspects of our bodies are interconnected?

Ravioli Retrofit

2010-03-09T23:50:00.000-06:00

So I mentioned that when Irish and I went out to eat, I got the mushroom ravioli. It was less than stellar, and I could only choke down 2 pillows of it. With 4 remaining, I felt an obligation to try resurrecting the ravioli into something more palatable.

I am an avid garlic lover, so I added a healthy dose of minced garlic and a few shakes of garlic pepper. A close second love in the spice department is basil, so I lightly coated the ravioli pillows with basil flakes. A little savory all-purpose, and careful drizzling of almond milk, and I felt like I did what I could for the ravioli.

I heated in a small glass casserole dish in the oven at 375* F for 8 minutes. It doesn't look all that tasty, but that's understandable after the mangling from to-go tin to casserole dish, and the stirring to coat with my ingredients.

The retrofit on the ravioli was a pretty good success. I didn't fall in love with them, but they were infinitely better than the original version. I do try to be resourceful and not let food go to waste when possible, so I figure this was a pretty good result all in all.

Are you a leftover person or not? Do you ever try to improve upon a restaurant's version of something? Who else is SO excited for spring to get here?!?! I can't wait!!

Habs and hemp

2010-03-08T22:37:00.000-06:00

I think Irish was trying to kill me tonight. He made a veggie fajita for me, but chose not to partake because he said he wasn't hungry. He put a slightly chopped habanero into the mix along with the jalapeno jack almond cheese. Holy smokes!!!

It was nothing but painful to eat. I added rice to the mix to try calming it down a little, but that didn't help. Two big glasses of almond milk didn't do much for my poor tongue and gums either. It was all on fire. I felt like I was breaking a fever sweat (although thankfully I didn't literally start sweating from my dinner!).

I also think I burnt off the top layer of my lips. This was the closest I've ever come to wanting to cry from food I've eaten. I'm going to have to pass on the whole hab for dinner next time. Sheesh!

Since Irish made it for me and I would NOT recommend anybody fix it for themselves, I have no picture or recipe for you.

A quick question for my local WF: Why do you no longer stock the regular or chocolate flavors of Nutiva hemp protein powder? All I can get is the "berry pomegranate" flavor, and I could get just as much protein in a scoop of PB and have less sugar and $20 more bucks in my pocket that way. I don't appreciate that. Please return the regular and chocolate flavors to your shelves so I don't waste my money or abandon the protein powder that helps heal my sore muscles in the mornings. Thanks! Sincerely, Trail

P.S. Actually, thanks WF. I just checked Amazon, and I can get 2 for the price of 1 from when you used to stock them anyway. I'll just buy online and get them delivered to my door. Don't worry, we're still friends. I like what you represent, just not when my cash disappears through your doors.

What is your heat tolerance for foods? Are you a fiery mouthed warrior or a firm believer that food should not be painful? I try to increase my heat tolerance in foods, but still think food shouldn't hurt. Do you use protein powder? What kind, how costly, where do you buy if you partake? Pre-veggie, I used whey; now I use hemp, but you can see my frustration. No mainstream grocery store has anything else either, so it's a must to plan ahead.

Ode de mushroom

2010-03-07T03:01:00.000-06:00

This was a much needed day of R&R. I got to fall asleep early and sleep in late. It's been a long time since I got enough sleep! I was craving a lazy weekend with just my hubs and my pup. It was almost too lazy, but after the stress of this week I was willing to become a vegetable for a day.

I had my first less-than-stellar attempt to concoct my own recipe. I guess after this many years of devising my own creations, it was bound to happen sometime. I think I know how to fix it for any of you who'd like to try it, though.

Mushroom rice

5 button mushrooms, sliced
olive oil, just enough to sautee
balsamic vinegar, equal to olive oil
1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
1 serving of brown rice (1/2 cup cooked rice)
dried minced onion, to taste
other spices to taste (I used garlic pepper and a savory salt-free mix)

Cook rice by stovetop or microwave. Slice mushrooms and saute in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Once the mixture is sizzling, add the ACV and the spices to taste.

Once the mushrooms are nice, sizzly, and browned, remove from heat and combine with the rice. You can add the sauce to it for an added punch, or add just the mushrooms for a milder flavor.

I used 1/4 cup ACV, and it was much too strong. I cut the amount in half for the shared recipe so nobody has to choke down the bitter flavor like I did! Otherwise, it was very good.

Despite my goof with the ACV, my rice was still 10x better than the mushroom ravioli that I had at a national chain restaurant. It was bad. They used cheap mushrooms and must not have fixed them right. The taste was overwhelming. Then the sauce was more mushroom and heavy cream. I ended up eating the portion I did because I was trying to decide what flavor could be added to fix it. Irish didn't want to tell them it wasn't good because he didn't want any spit added to our food. I wouldn't have had them replace the meal, but I might have asked for the item that would make it taste a little better. Sadly, I'm not sure anything could have been added to improve it.

Never in a million years would I have thought that I'd be developing discriminating tastes or consider changing a restaurant's menu. I really love this wide open world of food! I started the Oven Aversion name because I hate to cook. Now I enjoy fixing foods, dreaming up recipes, and yes, cooking. Woohoo!!

Are you a fan of mushrooms? Do you end up feeling rejuvenated by a lazy day? Have you ever felt the need to improve upon a restaurant's food?

Excitement is brewing

2010-03-04T23:15:00.000-06:00

So...... I have something very exciting in the works, and I just cannot wait to share it!

It's been a couple crazy long days at the 9-5 and I'm still trying to get the laptop daisy fresh again. But I wanted to share that I've gotten my very first giveaway offer. It's one that I want to accept from a company that I have supported over many years with my personal hard-earned money. I love the idea of doing this particular giveaway as my very first one because I love and support this company's products. A no brainer!

Bear with me for this because I'm sure there's some lead time to get the products, review them, plan the giveaway, etc., so just know that it's in the works! Until then, tell everyone to jump on the OA bandwagon so they don't miss their chance! :)

In other news:

I'm sure it's not a big newsflash, but I hate drama. There's been a lot of it for a variety of reasons lately, and if that doesn't settle down soon, I very well may have to find some medications. I thank my lucky stars that I changed my eating habits months before this because I truly would have needed a doctor's intervention. I tend to manage all those stressed out feelings inside my churning stomach so I maintain a cool exterior. Like a duck looking cool as a cucumber above water, but always paddling under the surface.

I ate a delicious honkin' salad for lunch today in honor of VT.

I've also had more and more people asking me about eating vegetarian and how I made the decision to change my eating habits. A few also asked how on earth Irish got on board with the idea. I've enjoyed talking to people about it, and hope that I'm walking on the right side of that fine line to share how great it's been for me and the health benefits that convinced me to give it a try but without sounding preachy in any way.

People often respond that they respect my ability to make that choice, but could never be able to give up meat. Maybe more of you seasoned veggies (mmm, tasty!) can help me with that. I simply respond back that it's actually been very easy for me and that I quickly reached the point where I had no desire to eat meat. I also share that it's pretty easy to find foods that you can eat in nearly every setting and that I feel better after changing my diet, which is a good motivator to continue. I certainly am sharing that just as a personal experience and not as a pitch for them to join me, and I hope that comes across. I don't want to become the "veggie thumper" (you know, the Bible thumper's cousin) because I'm passionate. I figure to each their own.

(See? Veggie and fruit lover not thumper. Except watermelons, but they're meant to be thumped!)

I'm looking very forward to the weekend. I want time to relax, rejuvenate, catch up on blogs, sleep, fam time... it's sad how quickly things can get neglected when certain parts of life get off kilter or become time sucks. That's part of the beauty of weekends. You can reset your life with a clean slate. You have the choice to fill it with festivities and friends or keep it open and relaxed. Love it!

So I think that's it for now. Here's to a productive Friday and straight on to a fab weekend!

Any suggestions or tips for planning a successful giveaway? How do you handle (or not handle) drama? Do you notice physical effects from the stress? What's your fave part about weekends?

Strong stomach storytime

2010-03-02T23:12:00.000-06:00

Who'da thunk you'd ever need to use that title for a post?

Even worse is the reason why.

So, I know this is a food blog, but I am asking you for your own health to put down any food you may be consuming as you read this post. It will also explain my extended hiatus for the past several days.

Read below only after steeling your stomach...

So this weekend was very much needed. Lots of drama the week before, and I couldn't WAIT to sink my teeth into a few days off. I ended up getting called back to work, though. I only wish that was the reason you needed a strong stomach to read this!

By the time I got home from work and the errands that were originally planned for the day, Irish was gone for a few days to help his dad. It was just me and the BabyBear.

Remember this ridiculously cute mug??

I decided that I deserved a relaxed night after the not-so-great day back at the 9-5. I settled in with the laptop and the BB and signed onto the bloggie and my email. I jotted down a few recipe ideas in a draft that I'd developed in my head on the drive home before I could forget them. I also started pulling up some of your recipes with the thought that I'd find a great pancake recipe as a base to then create my on flapjacks for the giveaway Katie has arranged. I remember that I had just grumbled as I realized how involved these pancake recipes were. Nothing like my old childhood Bisquick 'cakes with their piddly 3 extra ingredients.

And then came the horror.

BB projectiled. The most vile smelling odor I have ever smelled in my entire life exited that little dog's mouth. She put forth this nastiness all over my laptop. What I absolutely would have expected was the entire contents of her stomach was covering my precious, valuable ~~lifeline~~ laptop. I froze for several seconds in sheer astonishment. When I sprung into action, I pulled the plug from it, then took a few more seconds to realize that the laptop would have to be hard-powered down to cut the juice.

I tried to shake off the contents onto our floor (of lesser value to me at that point), but it wasn't coming off without hands-on intervention. As I placed the laptop upside down onto the floor to go grab paper towels, so projectiled again. I think she was trying to send me a nasty little message because puke #2 landed squarely onto the couch cushions where I was sitting just a minute before.

From there, it was a blur. I was working triage in my own home... I can't even count how many times she puked. I couldn't track from one spot to the next fast enough. It was the first time that I didn't feel like a strong independent woman who could conquer anything on my own. I wanted my husband. I wanted my mommy. I wanted a vet in my house ASAP.

I frantically called Irish and asked his advice. He said that he would call the vet if she threw up another 3 times. So 30 seconds later, I called the emergency number. The vet wasn't exactly pleased to be called. I don't think I had time to explain to him exactly how precious and important this sweet BB is and how badly he needed to heal her with his words. Or dispense something calming to her puppy mama at least.

He said she needed to puke it out and to remove her access to food and water. Don't you want to rush up to your office to see her pathetic face in person and perform a laying-of-the-hands for her? Don't you want to inspect the soggy paper towels and truly appreciate the stench that is making me gag on the phone with you to truly weigh the severity of this issue? (Sidenote: I fully believe this episode has sealed the fate for my uterus to be my bladder's kindly old maid neighbor rather than an incubator. However I do realize now that should I ever raise a kid I will be one of those moms.)

So we resigned ourselves to puke this out. BB was put into a bare kennel to contain the damage and shot me pathetic "how could you allow bad things to happen to me" looks. I picked up all the food and water and continued the clean, gag, clean, gag cycle. Irish called to check back on the situation and requested that I stay in the same room as her until she is all better. He didn't seem to understand that the barf spanned the whole house. He also tried to convince me that I should sleep with BB at my side so I would know if she was still puking or if she started to have signs of distress. I told him that I wouldn't be puked on and that putting the kennel next to the bed was the best that I could do.

Oh, and I also informed him that BB gifted him with a nice wide swath of puke across his half of the bed. Suddenly he seemed a little more open to the idea that BB could sleep in the kennel. It was around midnight that I realized that I hadn't even gotten the chance to eat dinner. All those delicious recipes swirling around my head just a few hours ago were just vague memories at that point. All I wanted was to stop smelling puke and get some much needed sleep.

Apparently it takes a few days for a laptop to dry out sufficiently before you can risk turning it on without shorting out something.

You may take a deep breath and resume eating when ready.

Soo.... I thought that I would let you all know where I have been and why I have been gone. I will have to try the recipes that I dreamed up and report back. I will have to continue a process that I very dirtily named "suck and blow"-- sucking up the crusty crap from the laptop with the vacuum attachment and blowing out the crud with an air can. Rinse and repeat.

What exciting things have you been up to lately? What has caused you to suffer one of those "I want my mommy" moments as an adult?

Oh yes, and a food update that wasn't pre-chewed. I tried raw, un-massaged kale in my lunch today. It was pretty tasty in the whole mix. As a plain ol' piece of kale all nekkid and all, I still don't love it. But how often do you eat nekkid leafy greens anyway? So all in all I would say that I have embraced kale. OH! I also got to try a few nibblets from a local raw vegan restaurant this weekend, too. It was d-i-v-i-n-e. I definitely want to go back and get a full meal. Soon. Yu-u-ummmm!

Wading into the deep end of the (thought) pool

2010-02-26T00:14:00.001-06:00

So tonight's post will have to be super-quick, and I apologize in advance for not reading and commenting on anybody tonight. Other demands unavoidably occupied my evening.

Vegan Thursday this week became a Vegan Wednesday. You saw my breakfast smoothie yesterday. I also ate a salad pita with spinach, broccoli, carrots, and hummus for lunch. Snackies were grapes and blueberries. It was delish and made my tummy happy! Irish made dinner for us last night. He made his famous (to me) veggie fajitas with brown rice, black beans, black eyed peas, corn, and other goodies. To my knowledge they are vegan, but I get to relax while he makes them so I can't be positive. That pampering makes my heart happy :)

I started taking just a B-12 pill this morning instead of my usual B-complex this morning thanks to a little info I learned from Candid RD. Between the B-complex and my regular multi, I was getting dangerously close to the upper limit for folate before I even popped any food in my mouth! Vegans already have a hard time with B-12 deficiency, and I'd say I eat around 90% vegan at this point. Too much folate can cause B-12 deficiency among other issues, which can cause a nasty anemia problem, so I figure I better set things straight!

Sleep won over exercise again this morning because the no-longer sore muscles felt so divine resting peacefully in bed. Not a good excuse, but it sure sounded good as I rolled over and grabbed another few zzz's. So instead of an exercise update, I have a little food for thought:

People fail because they trade what they want the most for what they want right now.

This profound thought came to me this evening in the form of a misplaced post-it note. Obviously I needed to get this message badly! I often get a bad case of choice-itis when I have to make really big decisions and a "right answer" isn't clear to me. That was my sentiment when I found this note. Now if only I could get clear on what I want the most in this situation that's causing the mental struggle.

What do you want the most? Do you consciously keep it at the top of your priority list to avoid trading it for the right now? Do you find this contradicts or unites with the concept of living in the moment? Do you wish I'd ask an easier question? What does your loved one do to help you feel loved and appreciated?

Liquid gold

2010-02-24T21:52:00.000-06:00

So for the past couple weeks, I've been making a breakfast smoothie every morning. I had fallen off the green monster wagon awhile back because it was a bit labor intensive. I made all 5 work-week monsters in advance and refrigerated them. It meant that my Sunday evenings were spent whipping these puppies up, and for some reason it took about 45 minutes. So I wouldn't always have them ready in time. Monday rolled around without a monster, but I'd have good intentions to make 4 that night... on and on kept the good intentions until Saturday morning and the leisure to do what I wanted for breakfast.

I've been getting better and better about getting up earlier to work out before work, prep my own homemade lunches (they're delish!), and whip up a breakfast. It's a protein smoothie to help my burning muscles, but it also has some health thrown into it. We had a surprise working lunch yesterday, so I kept my lunch at work. That gave me the time to snap a few pics of my breakfast for you!

Chocolate PB Nanner Smoothie

(You read that right... the holy trinity of vegan foodie bloggers all in one luscious breakfast, and it's all MINE! Well, and now yours too.)

8 oz nondairy milk (almond milk was my choice)
serving of the protein powder of your choice
1 tsp flax seeds
large glop of nut butter (I still use plain ol' PB because it's affordable)
1+ tsp cocoa powder to taste (omit if using chocolate protein powder)
1 banana
~6 ice cubes
Optional: add spinach or other healthy foods for that extra "pat on the back" for all your smart choices

[whir whir blend blend toil and trouble]

Doesn't that look delicious?!?! Almost like chocolate milk. It was so smooth and creamy. Since I am not cool enough to have a Vita, I start it on "stir" to get the initial kick of the motor warmed up, then boost up to liquefy. Irish had a sip and also gave it a thumbs up.

I am debating whether to try making it with an orange instead of a banana. (Remember those chocolate oranges where you "whack and crack" them to get the wedges apart?)

Popeye Time

Today was a rest day from working out. I had very achy muscles from the weekend trip we took thanks to the bed that didn't sleep like ours. I worked out Monday, despite still feeling sore. Tuesday I worked out "to my edge" as Averie calls it. I stretched to the point where I used controlled breathing to make myself not hold my breath through it. I followed that with strengthening. I felt great afterward and loved the protein smoothie even more that morning for helping me repair my sore muscles.

By last night, I asked Irish to buy some ~~old lady salve~~ Icy Hot to help. This morning I woke up smelling like old lady, picking butterscotch wrappers out of my hair from the raging early bird party at the local pancake house, and figured the best thing for today were some light stretches.

I worked out the sore muscles this morning, stretched them past the ache to where they relaxed into the stretch and felt better. Then I cheered for the protein smoothie again as I fantasized about the protein paratroopers dropping into the ~~war~~ torn muscle world in my body. With any luck, I'll be back to it with stronger muscles tomorrow after they win the war over the burn!

How do you soothe sore muscles? When you have to decide between extra sleep or a workout, which do you pick? What's your fave protein smoothie mixture?

Tomato Basil Soup

2010-02-23T22:12:00.000-06:00

What's a crazy cockamamie plan? How about deciding to make your own recipe for tomato basil soup when you've never eaten it before? Sound crazy enough for you? Good, 'cause that was the plan for dinner tonight!

Before I scare you off from reading, the results were delicious. It really was very tasty. I did check online recipes to get a sense of what went into it (besides tomato and basil), then greatly tweaked it to be my own and to the ingredients on hand.

So without further ado, here is the recipe:

Tomato basil soup

2 roma tomatoes, pureed whole
7 oz coconut milk
plenty of vegan butter (guesstimate is 3 tbsp)
2 tbsp basil
1 tsp dried minced onion

(Serves one)

Puree the tomatoes, then place on medium heat.

Throw in generous amounts of vegan butter. Toss it all in at once, or make a few passes through with the buttah.

Next, throw lots of basil into the mix. The 2 tbsp is a starting point, feel free to add or subtract to your tastes. Also add the coconut milk and optional minced onion. The cool thing with the dried onion is that it rehydrates as it's chillin' in the mix, so you end up getting tiny little pieces like regular onion with a long shelf life.

On medium heat, cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so nothing burns to the bottom of the pan.

Like I said, this soup was delicious! And I would like to point out, very proudly, that this soup has absolutely NO SALT ADDED TO IT!!!! That is truly a rarity for a soup. I never add salt to recipes and do not miss it one bit. It was wonderful to finish a soup and not feel icky from the sodium.

Enjoy!!

In other news, I am continuing to successfully navigate all kinds of social situations with a veggie attitude. I think initially my hangup was that people would feel they had to cater to me or treat me differently than the former me. But my eating habits are not meant to be a judgment on anybody else's eating habits. I do it for me. It is exciting to me, I am passionate about it, I adore the changes that I am taking to make myself and my health better, and even more so love the results.

I am met with varying responses and reactions. I think I tend toward the sensitive side if I'm not careful, so I am consciously trying not to read anything into people's responses. At the end of the day, this is the most important thing for me (and probably anybody else with alternative eating habits) to remember if and when faced with criticism: What I choose as fuel to nourish my body doesn't affect that person, and they shouldn't act like it does. I don't judge what they eat, they have no business judging what I eat. I mention that because of two people in particular who act like I became a loony tunes hippy dippy socialist nazi for cutting out the meat. I stressed for about 5 minutes before coming to that conclusion, then I blew it off. It's their hangup not mine.

Soooooo.... after that long-winded tangent, let's get to some questions and finishing this sucker up already!

How do you handle criticism? Do you think of the perfect response 5 minutes after the fact? Have you ever made the crazy decision to revamp a recipe for a food you've never even had before? Did you ever get flack for your eating choices; if so how did you handle it?

Weekend recap

2010-02-21T22:58:00.001-06:00

So I learned a few things over this weekend.

1) Some hotels that offer free wi-fi turn it off some time in the middle of the night, probably to minimize risk from hackers.

2) When you reunite with old friends, you can fall into old habits. But on the other hand, friends are the greatest gifts and truly the family that you choose for yourself.

3) Packing a gazillion snacks to take with you on a trip really helps with eating healthy, avoiding gas station foods, and saving money.

4) Eating healthy may very well help you handle alcoholic beverages better.

5) It isn't high maintenance to pack all the items that help you feel your best when you take a trip. Packing light and feeling like crap isn't a good trade off.

6) Getting used to waking up early really helps when hanging out with early risers.

7) Packing my yoga mat was a godsend, especially when I woke up feeling like I was a contortionist overnight. Before long I was feeling back to my normal self again.

8) If you've got the guts to get up and dance, who cares what it looks like! And if you're dancing with a wine glass, you're even safer.

9) Google, bless their heart, cannot get directions right to save their lives in certain downtown metropolises. Thank God for friends, cell phones, and text messaging.

10) Sometimes what you really need is a weekend away from all your responsibilities where you're required to relax, have fun, and leave your worries behind.

Bonus: 11) When eating healthy is a choice you make, you won't miss the other foods. While others stressed over whether to go for the cheese fries, bacon cheeseburger, extra slabs of bacon and sausage or to stick with their resolutions, I happily ordered my healthy foods and loved every bite of them. The fruits were divine and the veggies were amazing.

How was your weekend? Did you learn any lessons or have any revelations?

Zippity Quick!

2010-02-20T17:20:00.000-06:00

We're out of town for the day. Will try to post once we get back to the hotel for the night. xoxo

Smart choices

2010-02-18T23:00:00.000-06:00

It's another Vegan Thursday today. It was a big accomplishment for me. I had lunch out with new people and at a place that had a pre-set menu. Everything was meat-centric, but I still was able to request veggies only. So soup, salad, and side dishes later, I had successfully navigated yet another tough situation.

I did NOT whip out the camera in front of these strangers, since I was sharing the table with a bunch of new faces. It was wonderful, though. Plus I had choices besides having to rely on pasta to get through the meal. Like I said, this felt like a big accomplishment to me, and I felt good through the rest of the day. I have a feeling that pasta for lunch is too draining for me to have on a workday. Today went much better without any pasta.

Another big accomplishment for me? I already got my lunch packed and ready for tomorrow and it will also be vegan! A salad wrap with hummus is in store for Friday Me with lots of sweet and savory fruit and veggie snack options to accompany it.

It will look a lot like this:

But wrapped in this:

And slathered in this:

See why I can't wait?! Yum!

I'm still successfully increasing my stretches, muscles, and meditation. I'm so happy with the smart choices that I'm making!

What are the smartest health choices that you make/made? What choices help you feel your best?

Take 2's

2010-02-16T22:25:00.000-06:00

So a few days ago I enjoyed guacamole and then a mole burrito, but not simultaneously. Well, I think we allllll know where this is going. Obviously, no self-respecting mexican food lover could enjoy a delicious guacamole, an amazing burrito, have the ingredients on hand to make both and not combine them.

I changed up the guacamole recipe from the last time. I forgot to add the tomato this time, but I kinda think it turned out better this way. Fluffy avocado is so heavenly!

Guacamole of the Gods

1/2 large avocado
onion powder to taste (I used 3 pinches)
dark chile powder to taste (I used 1 generous pinch)
cayenne pepper powder to taste (I used 1 pinch)
garlic pepper to taste (I used 2 strong shakes)

Fluff it all together with a fork until it's creamy and fluffy.

Gorgeous! It was sooo delicious that I kept sampling as I fixed the burritos.

Mole burrito with guacamole

So I made the same burrito recipe as before. So easy: spinach tortillas, brown rice, black beans, and vegan cocoa mole sauce. Before rolling it together and stuffing your face, add the guacamole. Be generous with it because it's pretty darn tasty!

We also tried what we thought was a vegan almond cheese.

Looks good right? I was shocked because it actually had cassein from milk in it. We're vegetarian but I eat as vegan as I can. Before this, though, I would have never looked at purchasing an almond cheese, so I just assumed they were all created FOR vegans. I mean really, who would eat almond cheese if they weren't trying to eat vegetarian/vegan?? It's much pricier and doesn't melt as well.

Ok, veering back onto the beaten path here. So all this was to say that we tried the almond cheese in the burrito despite it's less-than-vegan status.

Beautiful and delicious burrito. Just 6 ingredients now, but just as quick to make. I fell in love with this meal. We promptly planned for the next time this week that we would fix it again. Play it again, Sam, it's a good'un!

Oh, and here was the ringing endorsement from Irish for the guacamole. He doesn't like guacamole, but he really liked this one. He said that he would eat guacamole now if I fixed it and revised his "I hate guacamole" stance to say that he doesn't like any restaurant produced guacamole. My simplistic guac beats the award winning restuarant recipes?! Wow, I will cherish that compliment for sure!

Updates:

I'm still trying to stretch every day and that seems to be helping me feel better. I don't feel like the stretches toward the splits are getting any deeper, but maybe they are one teensy bit at a time. This was day 2 of meditating. I feel like I'm doing a little better at it this time around. I've heard lots of the tricks for it so I'm trying to see what works. This morning I focused myself on the word "love" and then changed to focus on my breathing when I realized my brain split into 2 sections-- the one claiming to focus on the word and the other that was worlds away. I did much better focusing on my breath. I breathe shallowly much of the time and it was a good reminder to consciously breathe deeply. I'm sure that will help with the stress levels too.

What are your best meditation and focus techniques? What's the best cooking compliment you've received?

Never cook alone

2010-02-15T23:27:00.000-06:00

I'm a social person, so I don't do a whole lot alone. I don't drink alone, and I don't cook alone. Sometimes that means fixing a little pre-meal to eat while cooking so I don't get bored and give up. Sometimes that means cooking with the one I love. Last night I did both.

The Pre-Meal:

Remember how I bought the hemp protein powder to try?

I reached a level of clarity and focus on what to throw together for the test. Funny how all of a sudden you just know. So here was my concoction:

Hemp protein powder shake

1 pkg plain hemp protein powder
8 oz almond milk
1 banana
1 handful of blueberries
1 tsp flaxseeds
1/2 a large avocado (probably equal to 1 small avocado)
4 ice cubes

Toss it all in the blender and mix it up.

Hmm, this stuff looks pretty hippie...

That looks a little more promising...

Aaaand back to a little more intimidating. But we all know the only way to check the results is to man up and taste it. It turned out pretty tasty actually. Irish thought it was good but asked me to please not let him know what was in it. I'd take that as high praise. As for me, I would have it again!

Meditation Mediation

After considering the post yesterday where I admitted that I tend to let stress get the best of me, I'm trying to add a few minutes of meditation to my day. I am probably the world's worst meditator because my thoughts can derail me so quickly and I don't even realize it. I think I live in my head quite a bit. At any rate, I figure being the world's worst meditator and trying to do it is still much better than being the world's worst meditator who doesn't even try.

For now, though, the WWM is going to get ready for bed and spend a few minutes ~~with~~ without my thoughts.

Stress 'n' love

2010-02-14T20:50:00.001-06:00

Hi, my name is Trail, and I am a stress addict.

I started panicking this morning about all the stuff that needs to get done. The reality about life is that the stress never ends, the to do lists never end, our jobs never finish until we take our last breath. You can never clean and be done forever, cook and be done forever, get healthy and be done forever... Everything requires doing and redoing. I think sometimes I let my brain get carried away and overwhelm me. I think I sometimes allow the stress to overtake and squeeze out any down time to relax and recoup. I am publicly acknowledging this in hopes that I can learn to do better.

This segues into my Valentine's Day.

We shopped for jeans and struck out, we shopped for a good water filter for the shower and struck out (can you tell we are SUPER practical?!). We'll keep looking and find what we want later. No biggie. We considered a dinner and movie night, but opted instead to tackle a couple items on the to do list to reduce the stress level instead. Sometimes the best thing you can give somebody you love is a feeling of relaxation. Who can beat that?!

Irish is never one to go totally giftless for a holiday. I got a gorgeous simplistic bouquet. He knows my tastes well :) :) I loves him! :) (Sorry, I'll keep the mush under control now!)

Aren't they beeeutiful? I <3 Irish! Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Hope it was a great one! Lots of love to all of you; I love my bloggie friends!

What are your best techniques to handle stress? What helps you slow your roll and take things as they come?

VT recap

2010-02-13T12:12:00.003-06:00

I have a dream.

My dream is a humble one with much less lofty goals that Mr. Martin Luther King, Jr. My dream is to have energy once again. To de-stress. To not fall asleep on the couch every night. To stick to my workout plan. To get the house clean! To eat healthy. To relegate work to 8 hrs of my day because 1/3 of my life spent at work is more than enough! This is my dream.

Sometimes I do much better than others. I found a new love this past Vegan Thursday. Healthy, full of protein and nutrients, zingy tastes to entertain my buds, and vegan!

Black Bean and Rice Burrito with Mole Sauce

To make them, you take:

Spinach tortillas

Brown rice

(The simplest one is minute rice. It's fast and has negligible sodium.)

Black beans

Yes, these have salt in them, more than I would like. But sometimes ease of prep time trumps 1hr in the kitchen waiting on a single ingredient to be ready. I would have eaten my own hand by then.

And the crowning jewel...

Cocoa chile mole sauce (or another mole sauce of your choosing)

I know it's not the best pic of the ingredients label, but there was nothing animal-ish about it. This was the instigator to the entire meal. I couldn't wait to try the sauce and needed a meal for the job.

This was a fabulous party in my mouth! If I hadn't downed the entire bowl of guac the other night, it would have been a nice addition, but this was so good I didn't even miss it.

I also love that you can fully customize the meal amount. Irish wasn't home Thursday night, so this was a meal for one. I cooked up 1/2 cup rice, the full can of beans (washed and drained to reduce sodium), a little bit of mole sauce (probably a couple Tbsp worth) and heated up 2 tortillas. Plenty to eat for me, and with leftover beans in the fridge to recreate this meal again when Irish can try it. Plus it's a puny little 4 ingredients!

So easy and delicious!

Hopefully today will hold more of the same. Good eats and an energizing workout. That's my goal for today.

What's your best technique to get more energy (copious caffeine doesn't count!)? What is one of your fave quick go-to recipes?

Kristen's got a delish sounding oat bar giveaway!

Doldrums continue

2010-02-12T09:51:00.000-06:00

So I think I mentioned a week or two ago that I was seriously lacking in energy. This week has continued that trend. I have consistently reached a point each evening where I crashed on the couch. I would blink and not reopen my eyes. Without going into any details, times have been stressful, which I think often zaps my energy. Or maybe I whittle away all my energy into the stress. Either way, I think that's what has caused me to be so exhausted. I'm committed to getting back on track this weekend so I can feel more myself. I do have a vegan thursday post in the works for tonight with a muy delicioso dinner.

Just wanted to reassure that I'm still here, I'm still committed to this, I'm still ok. If you're interested in any details, you can feel free to email. xoxo Still nothin' but love!

Look I fixed it!

2010-02-08T22:54:00.000-06:00

Not afraid of fats.

So I know a few girls who are not afraid of fats. Embrace it baby! Dinner also had a hole theme (don't get dirty here!). Thus the title.

[source]

A friend gave me an adorable mini bundt cake, and I had an avocado that was calling my name from the fridge.

Yes folks, I am the reason that parents don't allow their small children to pick what's for dinner. Sadly, I never outgrew it. When Irish isn't here to share dinner with me, I have some whacked out eats.

I have one issue with avocados. If they aren't the perfect ripeness, I get tired of eating them partway through. So what does a gal do? Make guacamole!

It's so beautiful! And was just as tasty. I ate it all. I don't have an official recipe for this. And you'd probably cringe at the techniques used. I wouldn't pass a sanitation class on this one, that's for sure. But it was just for me and I eat my own germs all the time.

So here's the basic "recipe"

About 2/3 of large avocado
1/2 a roma tomato without the innards
Pinches to taste of ground cayenne pepper, ground dark chile, onion powder, garlic pepper
1-2 splashes of lime juice

Tips to fix it as dirty as I did. Use the same fork that you were using to eat the avocado raw. Bite the inside out of the 1/2 tomato like you just shot tequila and need a chaser. Lick fingers and fork repeatedly as you fix it. The actual important tip is to mash the avocado at each step so it's light and fluffy by the time you're done with it. Toss the tomato in last so you don't get them mushy from the fluffing.

It's so gorgeous it could be a screensaver! Except then you'd have to invest in a squeegee to wipe down all the drool. And you'd have to peel your coworkers off your desk.

Oh yes, and the bundt was good too. Cream cheese icing is divine for the non-vegan and was their solution to "fixing" the hole. I don't see the purpose for all the red food dye, but it sure does taste good!

Now there's another chance to get a little more fat. Averie is hosting a giveaway for some deeeeelicious coconut oil! Mmm, can't wait!

Foo la la la la!

2010-02-07T15:03:00.001-06:00

Fooey.

I feel like my blog looks so low-tech compared to some of the pretty ones out there. I should buy my own domain name already, but I want a plan for transitioning people over to it so I don't lose readers. Any suggestions for that?

I need to see if I have all the necessary documents to do our taxes yet. A mind-numbing but necessary evil. Actually, I really can't even consider it an evil because at the end of it, they will tell me that I get some of my mula back from that grinchy little Uncle of ours.

I'm craving something delicious, but I haven't figured out yet what it is. I did slurp down half a pita with tikka masala sauce and the other half with hummus. Sometimes it's hard to decide what your taste buds want. I think I may try some hot chocolate to see if that satisfies my ol' buds.

Ahh, that's better!

So I'd love to take some suggestions. What would make my blog better? What content makes you want to come back, and what makes you feel ho hum? Do you mind when I have lapses because of the craziness of life?

Abs and splits are still to come as promised.

(You can just ignore this part: JZYFYC5PYBWX )

A day fit for a queen

2010-02-06T23:42:00.001-06:00

A day fit for a queen

A workout fit for a warrior

I fell asleep early last night and slept in late this morning. Well, not straight through, but it was late by the time I finally rolled out of bed and showered. I was a little bassackwards about my game plan. I knew the shower would wake me up fast, in addition to the coffee my hubby had ready and waiting for me post-shower. (That's love to me!) But as I calculated in my head the amount of time before I had to leave, I realized there was plenty of time to work out, too. Since it was in the 60s in our living room (who else hates vaulted ceilings?!), I figured I could remain pretty stink-free during my workout.

I stretched for several minutes to warm up. Since Averie gave her ~~challenge~~ words of encouragement, this is day 2 of me holding as close to the splits as I can. If I remember tomorrow, I plan to get pics of my day 3 splits so we can compare as I go along to see if I really make any progress. I also did the typical stretches for the legs, arms, and my required DFD-- my day is off kilter without a downward facing dog.

I then did about 17 minutes of strength workouts. Considering I try to do big bang for your buck strength moves as it is, this was an impressive amount of time. I did several WMM2 moves because my quest for sexy abs was way less disciplined that Miss Angela's and, therefore, did not end on 1/31. I can see myself continuing many of the moves even when my abs reach their sexiest, though, just for maintenance sake. A strong core is so important. I also lifted weights for my arms. I love seeing my arms flex in the mirror as I get ready in the mornings because I've always had puny little arms. Muscle is hot!

I really felt the need for punishment, because I topped all of that off with 30 min of cardio.
Confession time:

I hate cardio.
I'm a wimp in the winter and don't like going out in the cold.
I don't like going on long walks or runs on my own and Irish's motivation got lost several months ago, so I have to get creative with cardio within 4 walls without a treadmill, elliptical, spin bike, or stair climber (or even stairs!).
I could REALLY use ideas on how to do cardio within those constraints!

So my solution was to mix some jogging in place, jumping jacks, and jump rope moves, and kickboxing (with a DVD) together for a half hour. It worked well, but either my endurance for cardio has gone down the toilet or I had ramped the level up higher than I anticipated. I cooled down quickly, but we'll see what the verdict is when I try to get out of bed tomorrow morning. For today, I feel good.

A breakfast fit for a CCV

So after my exercise, I was very ready for a good breakfast. Lots and lots of water and then the delish coffee were my first rewards post-workout.

Initially I thought that I would test out my hemp protein with a frozen banana and an apple. I double-checked the stats and decided that I wasn't brave enough to have 14g fiber from the protein powder (plus some additional from the fruit) and then head out for a girlie outing. I don't exactly know what 14g fiber will do to my body, and that wasn't how I wanted to find it out!

So my challenge was to have a delicious breakfast that would satisfy my protein requirements. I munched on some raw almonds as I perused the pantry. Here's what I came up with. Truly, a CCV-inspired smorgasbord:

Cocoa-flavored coffee, my chocolate PB ants at the picnic banana hammock, cocoa roasted almonds (I'd already eaten a big handful of raw almonds as I prepared the rest), and 3 squares of Green & Black's 85% cocoa dark chocolate.

Very chocolatey, but also packed about as much protein as the protein shake would have, and without the anxiety-inducing amounts of fiber. (Yes, I know that fiber is a very important part of our diets, but I know it needs to be added gradually or the side effects can be quite uncomfortable and embarrassing.)

I'm sure I don't have to tell you how delicious, chocolatey, and divine this breakfast tasted. It was delightful!

An afternoon fit for a girlie girl

After this fantastic breakfast, it was time to get ready for my girlie outing. Since I don't have any family that lives nearby anymore, one of my dearest friends' mom's offered to be my "adoptive" mom. She invited me to come with her and a bunch of friends to a yummy girlie restaurant nearby. I got all dolled up and bravely wore heels after that intense A.M. workout. Despite my left butt cheek falling asleep on the hard chair, I had a lot of fun. It was great to have some girlie bonding time and nab a few hugs from my faux mom.

An early evening fit for a neat freak

I came home and cleaned up the closet, folded some laundry, went through the mail, dusted, and organized. I tackled a few things that were loafing in the back of the closet because I hadn't felt like dealing with them up until now. With the bold attitude that it was "now or never," I found a home for all of it (mostly in the trash). I love how satisfying it feels to get something cleaned!

A dinner fit for a veggie

Dinner included the leftovers from lunch, a big bowl of Kabocha Apple Soup, and veggies with hummus. I decided to try a spicy version of the soup tonight. It was a little bit of an adjustment for my brain to have the thick creamy texture of something soothing with the big bold kick of spices. I added a savory salt-free blend, garlic pepper, dry minced onion flakes, and vindaloo masala curry. It was actually a very good blend!

An evening fit for a blogger

That brings us up to now. Blogging on the couch with my puppy in tow. Ahhh, what a great day! With any luck, I'll wake up tomorrow morning feeling rested and ready for more fun. So far, this is shaping up to be a great weekend! How about you?

Anybody have suggestions on getting cardio indoors? Do you try to consciously get a mix of workout elements (stretch, strength, cardio, endurance, etc)? What was the best Saturday you've had lately?

P.S. Katie's giving away a stash of stevia! It's been on my wish list, but since I haven't been baking all that often, I haven't been able to justify the purchase yet. Cross your fingers that I win!

Sneak peek

2010-02-06T13:56:00.000-06:00

I thought I would have the time to post before I have to run to an event, but time ran out. It's a breakfast with alternative means to get some protein besides a protein shake. And a kick butt workout! See you back here later today!

Vegan Thursday snackeroos

2010-02-05T00:37:00.000-06:00

Vegan Thursday

So today, despite all the craziness of work, I ate a vegan lunch in honor of VT. It was also partly because I never got the time to eat my actual lunch. Sad I know, but hopefully these hectic couple days will pass soon.

I was well prepared today with lots of yummy snacks! As I mentioned early this morning, I've been lagging on energy. I figure it was because of work, but to be safe, I also packed surplus snacks so I could munch through the day to add in extra cals too. I do feel better tonight than last night, so I think it helped.

I enjoyed whole grain pita with hummus, blueberries, blackberries, carrots, almonds, a clementine, and dates. It was quite the tasty smorgasbord.

Ok, in the interest of full disclosure, I then got stressed and frustrated late in the day and busted out cheap chocolate because it was available and comforting. One step at a time!

Kabocha Recap

So sorry I don't have an exciting concoction, recipe, or food picture to share today. Oh, but I told Kristen I would report back about the Kabocha Apple Soup with sweet potato. I tried it both ways last night-- adding sweet potato into the soup, and drizzling some soup onto the sweet potato. Both tasted wonderful! I liked the extra sweetness and texture that was added to the soup, and the super creaminess of the sweet potato with the soup over it was awesome too. It turned out to be a great healthy potato topping, and that doesn't happen every day!

So it's another night's sleep for me now and one final day of work this week. Wahoo!

Energy

2010-02-04T07:57:00.000-06:00

Energy.
I have none.

This week, I have been w-i-p-e-d. I just want to know why! Is this a wall that you hit after cutting down/out animal protein that you have to fight past? Maybe I need to adjust the calories out/calories in ratio (not that I've ever counted calories). Maybe it's just work.

If anybody has ideas or suggestions, PLEASE let me know!!

Quickie

2010-02-02T21:26:00.001-06:00

So I'm completely wiped out; this has been a rough week at work so far, so I'm keeping it short and sweet.

Lunch today brought a whole new meaning to "power lunch"-- starbucks and wheat thins. This would be an important time to remember that vegetarian doesn't always equate healthy. More on that a little further down.

[Insert a mental picture of the empty Wheat Thins box standing next to a drained SB cup on a shiny desk. I was too swamped to take an actual picture, but I trust you can all visualize this power couple of caffeine and carbs for yourself.]

For dinner tonight, I plan to undo the sugary carby ~~goodness~~ badness. Leftover veggie & rice thai dish from dinner with my bestie on Sunday, leftover kabocha apple soup, and some grabby little munchies-- carrots, broccoli, blueberries, blackberries. Delicious, quick, and hassle free!

In case you care to know, soft squishy tofu dumplings are much more edible the second time around.

Quick link

A quickie helper for people who may be interested...

I stumbled across this site and thought others might find it helpful, too.

[source]

PETA maintains this I Can't Believe It's Vegan site for a whole range of foods that are either purposefully or accidentally vegan. While I'm sure the list is not exhaustive, it may help for some of those head scratcher foods where it's hard to decipher if it is or is not vegan.

Fun Factoids:

The Cap'n protects animals with his Peanut Butter Crunch cereal. The Trix bunny may get malnourished by those darn kids, but we have confirmation that he was never included in the cereal. Another vegan loving bunny flavors your almond milk with Nesquik. (Actually important to note: Ghirardelli has several vegan hot chocolates.) You can keep your wings and stay vegan with Red Bull. Dum Dums are no dummies. The Keebler elves respect their forest friends with several vegan offerings. Their animal cookies are homages to our friends; they do NOT include any actual animals. My awesome lunch (whole box o' Wheat Thins) was vegan. Betty Crocker's Bac-o's are great big fake-o's. The little old ladies with their lint-covered Brach's are taking a stance against animal cruelty. (You know they say the biggest voting population is the older generation... right down to their lozenges!) Manwich sauce proves you can be manly and vegan all at once.

Important Points:

Ghirardelli has several vegan hot chocolates and a vegan dark chocolate bar. Smuckers has a marshmallow topping that is vegan. Hershey's syrup is vegan so you can continue to chocolate-ize... everything. Several brownie, biscuit, and bread mixes are vegan, so you can sub appropriately to make it fully vegan. Jello pudding mixes are also vegan-- easy peasy to sub out dairy milk.

Hope you enjoy all your new options!

What's your favorite "accidentally vegan" food? What's your super quick go-to dinner when your battery is drained?

Special K

2010-01-31T23:08:00.000-06:00

Ok, so it might as well be Christmas Eve around here. The suspense is killing me. I know that somebody will win the Vita-Mix. Hopefully me. I'm avoiding the urge to check CCV's page every second to see if the winner has been posted. For the record, as of 11:01pm it has not been posted.

Thankfully I saw one of my very favoritest people in the whole wide world today. That was so wonderful. I adore my bestie! :) Plus we always eat when we're together, and you can't beat good food and good company.

Today I tackled another very special K. Kale already took my k-card yesterday, but kabocha wasn't far behind. In my infamous cooking style of finding things and throwing them recklessly at each other in hopes that I find success, I tackled a kabocha soup in exactly this manner.

I had Irish cut my kabocha for me, then I ~~wedged~~ positioned it into a casserole dish. The trusty sticker told me to cook it at 375 F for 45 min, so that's exactly what I did.

When the timer sounded, I checked for some squash goodness. (Note: I DO occasionally find a use for the oven!)

Mmm, looks delicious....

In my head, I had a perfectly delicious and nutritious thick squash soup. I just had to get from point A to B. I've never really made a soup from scratch before, so I figured it would be wise to google and get a general idea for what I was doing. I think that was a very wise idea, and I thanked my lucky stars for picking up some low sodium veggie broth when it was on sale the weekend after Thanksgiving. Now fully fearless, I attacked the soup.

Kabocha Apple Soup

1 kabocha squash, roasted (375 F for 45 min)
2 red delicious (or similar) apples, blenderized
7 oz (1/2 a can) of organic coconut milk
8 oz of low sodium vegetable broth
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Optional: For a heartier veggie-style soup, consider adding carrots, onion etc. For a cozier soup, consider adding sweet potato and increasing the coconut milk and spices.

Blenderize everything together. PLEASE remember to vent it well because the kabocha is still hot! In my experience here, it worked well to cover with a paper towel and hold it in place loosely with the lid (with the hold removed from the middle).

This will result in creamy goodness with a thick baby food consistency. I like the ultra-thick squash soups, so that worked well for me.

This makes a big batch of soup. It nearly filled the 52 oz blender, so I'd guess 8-9 servings.

I fixed a bowl for Irish and for me, and I had 40 oz left. Plenty of leftovers to enjoy all week!

I have to say that it was delish. As I eat leftovers throughout the week, I may try out some of the optional versions and report back on how well they work.

First a kale fan, now a kabocha fan. These K foods are certainly earning a place in my heart.

Taking my k-card

2010-01-30T23:11:00.000-06:00

Forget the v-card, I lost my k-card tonight. That's right, I was a kale virgin before today. Not anymore, and I didn't approach it timidly either. I figure you ought to fully immerse yourself in the good stuff, so I jumped in with both feet. (Ok, so sex will always be better than kale, but I do agree with everyone else that kale is mighty tasty.)

So as you know, I often have to eat something as I cook. I tend to wait until I'm staaaarving, so I have to get some instant gratification. Tonight it was one heck of a winner!

What is it, you ask? Why it's organic Tikka Masala sauce on a whole grain flax english muffin. Could that be good? Oh heck yes. Drool-worthy good!

The stats, in case you're interested. It's vegetarian, but not vegan.

I'm sure if somebody wanted to veganize a tikka masala recipe (and mail me a jar), it wouldn't be that hard to change the cream to an alternative (coconut milk perhaps?).

So on to the other part of my dinner. A massaged kale salad of my own making. So here we go...

About 4 servings worth of kale. Seriously, whole hog would be an understatement. I massaged the stuffings out of it. There was so much that I had to massage in several batches to get it all wilted.

I threw a few ingredients together from the fridge and pantry to create a single serving of dressing.

Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sesame seed oil, lemon juice, dijon mustard, minced garlic. Plus a few dashes of spice for good measure. I had heard that kale can be very tart, so I figured that a strong dressing would help me cope if the kale was hard to handle. I forgot how very little I like sesame seed flavor, so I added extra lemon, vinegar, and garlic to compensate.

I tossed in chopped broccoli, carrots, and a handful each of dried cranberries and sliced almonds.

I drizzled the top with the dressing, then hand tossed it for even coverage.

If that beautiful salad doesn't take your breath away, I don't know what would.

I did manage to save half of my tikka masala muffin to eat with dinner. It was all so d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s! Gotta say, I love kale. Even though I really don't like sesame seed oil and tasted it on almost every bite, it worked. It was tamed with the lemon and all the textures. A little ping of sweet cranberry or creamy almond in the mix of it all was decadent. This is now one of my new favorite salads. I'd have to compare it closely to my Thanksgiving salad to decide which was the best.

I ate it all. By the last bite, I wasn't even sure if I could chew anymore, but I did and it was good to the last ~~drop~~ bite. Kale virgin, no more!

Back in the saddle again

2010-01-29T22:59:00.000-06:00

House guests are a funny thing. I really get the overstaying your welcome thing now. For so long, we desperately wanted to host out of town guests and weren't in a position to do so. (We lived as newlyweds with a dog in 600 sq ft... oh and we had lived in separate apartments pre-marriage, which means twice the stuff!)

Now we can host and we've had guests out the wazoo for this prolonged holiday season. I loved getting to visit with each and every one of them, and I was glad that I could put them up in comfortable homey digs. They all said they felt welcomed and loved the feeling of staying with us, and I loved being able to provide that. So please don't get me wrong. BUT... the flip side is that your own personal world is kind of turned upside down. I would work long stressful hours, then go home and host until I couldn't do it anymore. Then I'd have to excuse myself to get ready for bed (which this past week 3 times was falling asleep across the bed still in my clothes because I couldn't even make it through the bedtime routine first). They would still be up laaate into the night. Then I'd have to get up extra early and slip into the kitchen to get stuff prepared that I normally would have prepared the night before, clean up the little messes that accumulated so that I continued to host with a clean house, and repeat. Exhausting.

Like I said, I loved getting to see everyone, but I'm ~~kind of~~ really glad we're done for awhile now. I can change into PJ's when I get home. I can concoct crazy snacks for one. I can take pictures of my food. I can eat vegan dinners. I can read and write blogs. I can eat at home. I can watch the TV shows I want when I want. The dog follows commands. I can go to bed when I'm tired. I can take off my bra. Heck, I could wander around in my undies if I wanted (although it's a little chilly for that)! I can live a politics-free life. So, life is good with or without house guests.

I don't have anything new and delicious to share. I came back from a long day at work to heated up canned soup for dinner with a side of coffee (my request). I have some dessert left over from the Long Visit, so I'll polish that off before bed. Boring, not all that healthy, still vegetarian at least, but not a photo op.

One super exciting thing I want to share with you before I go. I consider it a big victory. Lunch was catered in for us today at work. It was a surprise and I was told to come fix a plate after it was delivered. I walked in and saw meat of every shape and size. I felt a little anxious. I had just congratulated myself for eating fully vegetarian for a few weeks now, even WITH the house guests! I grabbed a plate and surveyed. I strategized a way to get only the grains and veggies without getting meat. I was successful and got a bellyful. That was a major victory for me. I felt so proud that I figured out how to make it work.

Thank you Marla of Family Fresh Cooking for the Coach's Oats! I can't wait for them to arrive so I can try them :) Now if only I could win the Vita-Mix too, I would be the happiest girl on earth!

Still around

2010-01-26T07:47:00.000-06:00

So sorry I haven't been posting lately! I'm still around and still trying to get everything done!

My out of town guests requested to stay... another... WEEK! Overall it's fine, but it does mean that my free time, my personal time shrunk down to zero until sometime late in the week. I'm not doing my crazy concoctions for meals, taking pictures of them, etc, so my posts that I can squeeze in will be pretty bare bones. I promise that I'll be back up and running soon, though!

Still eating vegetarian and getting lots of practice finding veggie meals in restaurants with them here. I'm so proud of Irish too; he's getting bolder about being veggie and has even requested substitutes for meat on his meal items. Ok, I've got to run to work. Hugs and kisses to everyone and I promise I'll see you again soon!

P.S. Some of you may receive some severely belated comments on your posts as I get time to catch up after this week. xoxo

A life in 180

2010-01-22T23:53:00.000-06:00

Sorry I went ~~postal~~ postless yesterday. We had out-of-town guests come in last night. I didn't think to preset a post, but had one brewing so here it is:

I had a possibly Vegan Thursday yesterday. I was out and about all day yesterday, so I was at the mercy of what I could find at a restaurant. It was also a Mexican food day, which can be a bit of a lard challenge, so let's see how I did. I had an avocado and black bean burrito in a spinach tortilla. Black beans rather than refried beans kept the high risk of lard at bay. Spinach tortilla seemed like a pretty good choice. It included rice, spinach, black beans, avocado slices, onion, and pico de gallo. I don't feel like I can know for sure what's vegan if I don't fix it, but I figure this had a fairly good possibility of being vegan.

[source]

Growing up, I was raised Catholic, so we had to follow meatless Friday protocol during Lent. At that time, I found it so difficult and so restrictive. I hated it and would sometimes eat meat and feign that I forgot. Of course then I felt guilty because God knew I hadn't forgotten and he would reckon with me later. Now that I'm trying to eat vegetarian or vegan, I enjoy the challenge. I'm getting more and more comfortable with the lifestyle, the label, and following it in any setting. As I see the benefits first hand for myself, I'm gaining momentum. I'm excited about the decision now more than ever. So now I revel in having a string of days without eating any meat (I'm not counting because I don't want a slip up to make me feel disappointed with myself) and I enjoy the challenge of looking at restaurant menus and figuring out how to get a meatless meal. I also think that meatless options must have greatly expanded in recent years, which is another big help for me.

[source]

In other quick news for tonight, we can all help Haiti relief through the big Hope for Haiti telethon. You can offer your donation through them, Red Cross, Oxfam, and many other places. Also, say goodnight to dear Conan. He will be missed. (Fair warning, that link may be dead pretty quick!)

[source]

So what do you think, did my meal sound like it was vegan? What are your tricks for getting vegan food in a less-than-perfect restaurant? Do you think there are more vegetarian/vegan options available now than a decade ago?

Gentle hoss

2010-01-20T21:55:00.000-06:00

Being gentle on yourself

This is an important belief for me. It's also a relatively new one. I used to beat myself up when I didn't accomplish or achieve what I set as my goal. Inevitably, I set very lofty expectations and almost always managed to fall short. One of the potential pitfalls for being in tune with yourself is that you can make a list as long as your leg for what you know you need to improve for your health and your well being. The responsibility that accompanies this knowledge is that you also need to know how to be gentle on yourself.

To me, you can have a good self esteem and be happy, optimistic, and maintain a good attitude and still be harsh on yourself for not meeting your goals. However, it is not optimal. If you are kind to yourself, you will end up much happier, and I believe that you'll also come much closer to meeting your expectations for yourself as well.

If you want to keep a cleaner house, donate everything you don't use anymore, exercise every morning before work, cook nutritious meals every day after the 8-5 grind, devour a new book each month, spend quality time with your loved ones, meet new friends, and maintain a fabulous and successful blog all at the same time, you will not achieve everything all at once. The problem I think most people face is that these goals are competing for your time and often are things that you consider to have relative equal importance. You may feel like you need to calm the chaos in your life by exercising, eating better, cleaning up the house, and reconnecting with family. Those would be equal goals in your life that all serve the one greater purpose. Unless these goals become your new full time job, you won't reach a point of completion for them simultaneously. (And if you approach them like they're a job, you won't be happy anyway.) Jump in and do something. Something is better than nothing. In these life goals, there's no all or nothing. There's no wasted effort. You may get to schedule time with friends once a month after work, but that's once more than you did before you set your goal. You may squeeze in 5 min of exercise before you hit the hay, but it's 5 min better than nothing.

As an added bonus, this attitude toward your goals helps you to be happier and more content with what you have accomplished. You'll get to cross things off your list some days and you'll feel better than when you thought these tasks were unachievable. Be gentle on yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be your own friend.

I know I know, enough with the ~~cheese~~ cheeze. But now you know why I say that I'm gentle on myself. Because something's better than nothing, and I celebrate each baby step toward a better, happier, healthier life.

The potato and the pi(ta)

2010-01-19T23:21:00.000-06:00

Always be prepared.

I started planning dinner in my head while I was still at work today. On my way home, I called Irish to see if he'd be home for dinner or not. He had a work dinner, so it was just me. Noooo problem! I can fix a meal for one, and honestly couldn't wait for it!

I used to dread cooking for one. I had many an evening of microwave popcorn as dinner once upon a time. It was the old mindset from my parents that you needed a complete meal with several items and each food group to actually consider it a dinner. It paralyzed me. I HATED the thought of handling raw meat, so I wasn't going to whip up anything that started as salmonella's and e. coli's playground. Steamed veggies neatly piled into their respective corners of the plate got so boring so fast. Blah blah, cut to the chase, I broke free of that finally. I realized that dinner is a filling and nutritious meal, not a five-item, four-color checklist to fulfill.

So tonight I had it all planned out. My pita stash was replenished, my hummus was begging to be finished, and I had an oh-so-lonely sweet potato. Beaut! I washed and stabbed the sweet little tater and tossed it in the microwave for eight minutes. I swaddled it with a moist paper towel to help the moist cooking mojo.

Whipped cinnamon butter sounded sooooo good, so I put some vegan butter in a little dish, heated it for a few seconds, and doused it heavily with cinnamon. Whip it.. whip it good by stirring the heck out of it with a butter knife. In the small little bowl, it has nowhere to go and blends quickly and easily. Plus you don't overestimate your butter intake. Possibly the best part-- who can't handle a two ingredient recipe?!

I then laid out my pita and lined the inside with hummus. I stuffed that sucker to the brim with spinach, chopped carrot slices, and broccoli slices. I thought it was going to be the less messy version of my salad pita, except I stuffed it so full that the pita split. It apparently missed the memo that it was supposed to be pocket-like. Oh well, I'm used to eating pita contents off my bare hands at this point anyway, so why stop now.

Last step, I slathered the insides of my baked sweet potato with the whipped cinnamon butter. I like to deconstruct the insides before I eat it so it's basically mashed sweet potatoes. It evens out the butter to tater ratio. I still swear I'm not OCD.

Dinner was a delectable masterpiece. Sooo good and so filling! I fully expected to have plenty of room for a few fudge babies, but surprisingly there was no room at the inn. They'll have to wait for breakfast instead.

Do you like cooking (or uncooking) best for small or large groups? Do you usually plan your meals ahead or do you shoot from the hip based on your tastes? Do you usually follow recipes/ plans or do you get flashes of inspiration? I often have a mix-- I knew a couple hours in advance what I'd fix, but the cinnamon butter hit me as I started the microwave. I'll sometimes check out our spice or condiment stashes to decide what I think would mix well. Thankfully it usually turns out pretty well! Till tomorrow!

Old, new, but not feeling blue!

2010-01-18T23:01:00.002-06:00

Something old and something new

So despite MLK Day today, the UPS folks still rocked out a full day's work. Just like me. I'm so grateful for them because they brought my new pair of adorable vegan tall boots to my doorstep. (Apparently brown really can do something for me.) I was lamenting (that would be the kind way to say cursing) that USPS got the day off today because it meant that I could miss a Wednesday deadline for something I mailed early this morning. See? Tried to be on top of it, but the (post)man kept me down. Just to check, I asked Irish if any packages were waiting for me, and he said yes. I squealed because it meant either my kitchen scale or a pair of cute shoes were waiting, and either one was cause for celebration. I love shoes. I honestly adore them.

(Feel free to ignore the bone-defying contortions of my noodle legs.)

Ok, so I digressed quite a bit. Veering back onto the path, though, new cute boots. To try them on, I felt like I needed an appropriate outfit. Perusing my closet, I settled on what I was fairly certain would be impossible. A very cute pair of khaki legging pants from the last go-around when they were popular. (End of high school if memory serves correctly.) I was sure they couldn't fit, and simultaneously wondered why on earth I still had them if that was the case. Ladies, spandex is your friend. I could still wear the pants! Not just for giggles either. Like I could honestly zip, button, stand, sit, and breathe in these pants. They are perfect to wear with boots, too, because the one thing that did change slightly was my height. Tuck those babies in and nobody's the wiser.

(Look, I'm fashionable now... it's a miracle!)

New isn't always better

Then for dinner we tried the gardein that we bought at our WF scavenger hunt.

We tried to use Katie's technique of NOT trying to believe it was really chicken, but it still wasn't enough. Shockingly, Irish was a better trooper about it than me. He ate both of his little chick'n cutlets. I ate a bite, then created a topping. Italian dressing, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, and a splash of lemon, just in case anyone wants to recreate. I smothered the sunnuvabeetch like it was on fire. It still wasn't enough. At that point I ate all the brown rice on my plate and left half of my second cutlet on the plate. I couldn't finish it. I would much rather have nothing resembling meat than something that tastes gross but looks vaguely meatish. I haven't missed meat, so I don't think I'll try to replace it. Not with that, at least.

Wanna know what "new" would definitely be better? The Vita-Mix that Katie's giving away!

I managed to fill my belly with everything I was willing to eat, wash that down with almond milk, wash that down with fudge babies, and now I'll go dream of cute outfits that will appropriately show off the boots. With any luck, the scale will arrive tomorrow! I love happy days like today... this Monday rocked out! :)

P.S. If anyone cares to know, I'm sore from my mega workout yesterday. I'm trying very hard to power through and move normally because that seems to limber up the muscles again. I only did light stretching today, but I'm hoping to be back at it tomorrow morning. WMM2 is a powerhouse workout for the core muscles. I love when my core feels strong!

What's your favorite fashion item? Mine, clearly, is shoes. Any tips for looking trendy with my new boots? What new food item did you try that you hated and/or that you unexpectedly loved? What exercise leaves you feeling most satisfied? (Clean answers only please!)

A fresh start

2010-01-17T23:14:00.000-06:00

The cleanse.

So it may be gross, but this weekend certainly gave me a fresh start. The lighter, easier to manage period has now come and gone. I did a peroxide wash for mine and Irish's ears. I used the neti pot again.

I got some extra sleep. I worked out. I ate up all our leftovers.

(Leftover spaghetti squash with tomato basil sauce. Soooo good!)

I cleaned the kitchen. I removed all science projects from the fridge.

(Yes, sadly we have the fake wood counter top. It's a rental, don't judge!)

I'm feeling so much better detoxing off meat. I have been more energetic this weekend. Happier. Felt healthier. I'm definitely hoping this is heading toward my new norm. I hated feeling so sluggish and worn out all the time. Cross your fingers for me!

So this afternoon, I took BB on a walk. Then I did WMM2, some light yoga (nothing like her crazy amazing poses!), and a few butt busting moves. I may be sore tomorrow, but it just felt so great to get moving again! That's part of what I like about working out. When you call it a day, you can do something totally different tomorrow!

Then I got down to biz-nass. The business of baby making! Yes, that's right, my mother's dream may come true... no wait, never mind... I don't think this is what she had in mind. To satisfy your voyeuristic cravings, I took pictures of the action. (Fair warning, not all the pics are fantastic. My camera was literally dying in the process.)
First, I prepared.

I laid out all the pretty red measuring utensils.

And then the 4 easy peasy ingredients.

Then I fortified myself with a small salad so I didn't eat all the dough immediately. Plus, I was feeling the need for some potassium for my muscles. Hey, it's not a commercial kitchen. I'm allowed to eat while I cook if I want to!

So it took some effort, and two appliances to get the job done, since I don't own a Vita-Mix (yet, that is!). My Kitchen-Aid blender complained at a certain point, and was unable to finish. So then I had to split the "dough" into two runs through the food processor. If only I had my own Vita-Mix from Katie's giveaway, I could have whipped this out in no time!

Nevertheless, I'm a trooper, so I prevailed.

I shaped my babies using a tablespoon. Despite what you may think, I am not OCD. So my utensils match my George Foreman. And I laid out the ingredients with the appropriate measuring cups in front of them. And I tried to keep my balls uniform using the tablespoon then carefully rolling the balls in my hand (TWSS!).

My beautiful babies.

Genuine original fudge babies.

They're beaming with hope that their future generations will be made with a Vita-Mix.

But it didn't end there. I made FIVE green monster breakfasts in preparation for the upcoming busy work week. This week's smoothies included lots of spinach, broccoli, almond milk (that's right, and I LOVE it! I'm a convert), protein powder, chia seeds, flax seeds, carrots, a little cocoa powder (hey, why stop now!), a few clementines, a pear, an apple, frozen blueberries, cherries, mixed berries... Phew, it was quite the concoction! I had to blend it down a couple times to fit it all in one huge batch.

(See, this could have been much easier to make with a... yep, Vita-Mix! I know, broken record.)

And still, it didn't stop there. I also pulled together a huge batch of vegan lunches so I can get at least 3-4 days worth. (I'll have a few lunches out this week, so I planned accordingly with my proportions.)

(This was the point when the camera really started to die. It couldn't even manage to focus, so I'm sorry. You aren't going blind, it's the picture. This was the best of several.)

So this is my great base for vegan lunches. I was so excited that I made it into an exclamation point! Cutesy. Anyway, from here I can eat a salad, fruit, almonds, babies, or whatever else with it to finish out the meal. The base is brown rice, black-eyed peas, green beans, squash, zucchini, peas, a little onion, and a hefty dousing of just 3 spices (amazing for me!)-- garlic pepper, zesty salt-free all purpose, and dark chili powder. It required restraint not to eat half the rice right then and there because it was the perfect combo. Can't wait for lunchtime tomorrow.

I then cleaned up the kitchen again and devoured a few more of my babies. I feel quite satisfied with myself. Job well done! Now I'll nurse my dishwater hands and cuddle with my hubby. G'night!

I call ...

2010-01-17T00:40:00.000-06:00

Smells like a pack 'o lies.

Wow. So you may have seen the "booya" style ads from Sweet Surprise on high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). It made even my husband, who generally just absorbs his nutritional education from me, call B.S. I felt like I'd just seen a skeezy political ad.

I also kind of felt like their comparison of HFCS to refined white sugar was like saying slave labor was just as good as sweatshops. Neither one is good, people!

It's highly refined, a bastardization of corn. I started laughing at the last point in the myths portion. It was supposed to reassure that genetically modified corn, that may or may not be in HFCS, wouldn't matter because you couldn't even find any corn DNA in the HFCS. How is that a good thing? You know, other than possibly not ingesting pesticides.

I just find it sad that they're trying to defend this crap. Sorry people, but I'm not falling for it. I'll continue to find alternatives to HFCS and avoid the biggest culprits like soda. All this really does it help people who eat a highly processed unhealthy diet feel better about their poor choices. So let's just call it what it is.

Vita-Mix Wannabe!

2010-01-16T16:11:00.003-06:00

I'm definitely a Vita-Mix wannabe. With any luck, I'll win one from the fabulous Katie!

I have a Kitchen-Aid blender from our wedding registry.

When we got it, we thought that was the best blender on the market, the greatest thing ever. Then I started researching vegetarian/vegan eating, and discovered the whole new world of the Vita-Mix. I turned green with envy. All those recipes that could be made better with the help of the Vita-Mix. Oh, if only!

So now, this is my chance! Cross your fingers that I'm the lucky one!

Gummed up

2010-01-14T22:47:00.001-06:00

I stumbled upon an important vegetarian/vegan question. So I popped a piece of gum earlier today and noticed "glycerol" on the label. I was curious... wonder if glycerol is anything like glycerin, which is made from animal fat. So where to turn? Why wikipedia of course! I was shocked to find out that it was, in fact, basically the same thing. I thought, "I bet nobody even knows this!" but then realized I'm new to this and many others are not. So I looked up info about whether gum was vegan. Apparently most of it is not, and really, being animal fat, it's not even vegetarian. (And on Vegan Thursday, too!) How sad. I've got quite the stash, too! Any tips out there from the more experienced?

So this may be a little TMI, but I tentatively think that going vegetarian has helped my, uh, monthly visit from Aunt Flo be a little less brutal. That's all I'll say here. Feel free to email or comment if you actually care to discuss my cycles. My site or not, I won't make anyone endure that unwillingly! Is this a common occurrence or possibly just a fluke?

Also, I met a lady today who is vegetarian for ethical reasons, but thinks it's stupid for people to be vegan because there's nothing wrong with eating the animal products. Really? I was shocked that she could be so uneducated about it.

She figured that the chickens would produce eggs no matter what, the cows would produce milk, and nothing got harmed by it. Live and let live. This really shocked me. I mean, I fully understand that people will believe and do what they want. I can't say that I'm 100% vegetarian yet, and certainly not vegan yet. And I know the harm and abuse that is caused. Food is an essential part of our lives, but it's also become an emotional and sentimental experience for us as well. We tie memories to food, which makes it much harder to change. It can also mean that it's that much harder for us to allow our thoughts about the cruelty of the meal ingredients to trump the emotional memories of the dinner. (Hello Thanksgiving turkey!) Anyway, I was just very surprised that she could be so uninformed about the sister of vegetarianism.

What are the sneaky ingredients you look to avoid to know that the item is vegetarian or vegan?

P.S. Averie is giving away chia seeds! Cross your fingers that I'm the lucky one, so I can get past my monstrous chia fail from earlier this week!

Don't breed hate

2010-01-13T20:32:00.001-06:00

My name is Trail, and I have a confession. My stomach churns when I hear about people who ~~prostitute~~ ~~pimp~~ breed their dogs. There are too many rescue dogs, shelter dogs, hoarded dogs, stray dogs out there. They are sweet, wonderful, loyal, loving dogs, and they all need good, loving homes. I hate knowing that these people are intentionally putting more dogs out in this world that have to be paired with a forever home. I also hate it because I know it means one more shelter dog won't get a home. I can't even think about what happens after too many days without finding a new family. I hate that as well.

So I'm going to introduce you to my daughter, Baby Bear.

She was a three-time rescue pup. She was abandoned in a parking lot and found by a family that was willing to take her into the store and request that they call the shelter to pick her up. The shelter saved her from homelessness and put her in the adoption lineup at the shelter. When too many days passed and she was headed for death row (that phrase still makes tears well up in my eyes), she was saved yet again by a small dog rescue league. I LOVE them. They socialized her, trained her, fed her, SPAYED her, vaccinated her, kept her in a home setting, and are absolutely no kill.

So after all these rescues, I went to at an adoption event, and it was love at first sight. In all honesty, BB found me, and I can promise you that she knew I would be her forever home. She stared deeply into my eyes with her dark chocolate brown eyes and told me she was mine. I hunted the not-so-accessible adoption coordinator until I finally got her cornered and told her I found my dog. I purchased all the doggie necessities on faith so that I could be prepared for the adoption. I took off work early to meet the adoption coordinator for a home visit. And finally, at the end of this meeting, she was mine. We have been inseparable ever since.

Here's what she has to say about dog breeding:

If my mommy had gone to a breeder, I wouldn't be with my family. Who knows what would happen to puppies like me who get abandoned. I'm not a purebred, but my love is pure. Some of my friends at the shelter were purebred, though, if you like a more uniform look. I hear that lots of people are not created on purpose, and that happens to us too. Accidents happen and we all need good homes. I know most shelter supporters say that responsible breeders are ok, but there are only so many good places for us all to live. I kinda think that we should all get to call dibs on homes before people make their dogs have more puppies.

If I had come from a breeder, I would not have been taught all those neat tricks that make my mommy so happy, like only peeing and pooing outside, sleeping in my crate while she's at work, coming when she calls my name, and sitting when ~~I'm annoying her~~ I'm told. Getting spayed wasn't bad, and I like that now I know the frisky little neighbor dog can't knock me up. I know my mommy and daddy would never pimp me out, but I think it's a nice reassurance for other dogs who can't be so sure. So in conclusion, from your source from the inside, shelter dogs can be your bestest friends in the whole wide world if you'll just give us a chance.

It's me again now:
I know that everyone who owns a dog thinks it's the greatest, sweetest, most adorable dog ever. I also know that times are hard and people are trying to get creative with how to make money. Neither is a valid reason to purposefully create more puppies. Take lots of pictures of your dog and cherish the several years that you have together with her. And if you really need money, get creative in other ways. Sell pet rocks; they're bound to make a comeback some time soon, and I don't think they'll have an over crowding problem!

Now we're both going to step down from our soap box and get laaaaaaid back! And please understand that I'm not judging others. I feel strongly about this because I want to see all homeless pets find good homes and because I know that shelter pups can be the greatest thing on earth. This is just my own visceral reaction to learning that somebody breeds their dog and sells the offspring. If you bought your dog from a breeder and treat them like royalty, then I'm truly extremely happy for you. xoxo

A hit and a miss

2010-01-12T23:03:00.002-06:00

Ok, so this morning I tried my chia seed concoction.

Can't say I would recommend it. Thankfully I just made a very small batch. I'm definitely going to keep looking for a different combo. This mixture was chia seeds, water, vanilla extract, and cinnamon. I think it's safe to say that I didn't have a clue what I was doing!

Any thoughts on better concoctions to make with the chia seeds? Of course, the easiest is to toss them into anything, but I'd be curious about a more main dish type recipe. I may try the chiapioca pudding.

On to more exciting news. I found two exciting items at the grocery store last night.

Target's brand now makes their own dark chocolate peanut butter. The ingredients list is excellent and only what's needed. I may sound like I'm gushing cause I'm in loooove! Serendipitously, I also happen to be making a big ol' thumbs up as I hold the jar. Oh, and for the reduce, reuse, recycle benefits, the jar is glass and will be perfect for storing more delicious treats once the PB is devoured.

Here's the other great discovery. Silk now makes an almond milk (or maybe they always have and my store just stocked it). Even better, it's at the great Silk prices. A full couple bucks cheaper than any others that I've found. It gives me hope that I'll be able to keep us stocked with soy milk and almond milk on a regular basis without landing in the poorhouse. Especially with Irish's ravenous appetite for dairy-like substances!

And onto the other goodness of tonight, a new twist on a tasty s'mores banana hammock.

Ants at the Picnic S'mores Banana Hammock

Banana, split in half
Dark chocolate peanut butter
Caramel sauce swirl
Marshmallow bits
Raisins

Melt for approx 25 seconds
It smelled like fresh cookies!

A nice big juicy naner, split wide open.

Slathered in chocolate peanut butter and swirled over with caramel sauce.

Add the marshmallow polka dots. (I checked the ingredients; sadly the ones I had on hand were not vegan because of the gelatin.)

Finally, allow the raisins to reign on your ~~parade~~ picnic! Notice the light meltiness to the hammock.

ZOMG! It was heavenly! Irish begged for a bite and he loved it, too!

It's definitely more of an after dinner hammock, a dessert hammock if you will. I love that with the melted banana and melted chocolate PB, it almost tasted a little toasted like a true s'mores.

Cuddle up with one of these babies tonight!

S'ghetti Squash & Smiley Face Dinners

2010-01-11T22:45:00.001-06:00

We had a lovely vegan dinner last night. We fixed spaghetti squash with a roasted garlic red sauce. We had bread and a nice glass of red wine with it. It was delish and I have leftovers to take with me to lunch tomorrow. It was so nice to enjoy it together.

Tonight on the way home from work, I bought whole wheat flax english muffins and dark chocolate peanut butter. Irish wasn't interested in dinner, so I ended up eating two english muffins with dark chocolate PB on top. The first one was just plain, but the second one was topped with banana.

By the time I stopped to take a breath and grab the camera, I only had a couple bites left of the first muffin. The second muffin was successfully photographed, though.

Smiley face dinner :) I don't think you can top a dinner that smiles back at you. I then smushed the naner all over the muffins. Deeeeeelicious!

I mixed up a little chia seed concoction last night. I'm not quite sure about it, so we'll see how it goes. I'll report back tomorrow.

What's your super simple meal?

Whole Foods porn

2010-01-10T01:33:00.000-06:00

I'll probably regret the title after I start getting strange google searches, but it's accurate.

I had a few items on my grocery list that I couldn't find anywhere else. So after a tasty lunch with my to die for salad pita, a mini salad, a clementine, and gingerbread herbal tea, it was off to Whole Foods we went.

Shopping fuel

Can I just start by saying that I LOVED how many samples were out today! Nothing like getting to eat your way through the store!

So anyway, I had a few items on my list, and a few to research. I was eager to start the search. Irish was eager to get done, but he tried to be a good sport about it. He's pretty amazing like that.

He was hoping to find an egg substitute so he could cross one more thing off his list of reasons why he wouldn't consider going vegan. I knew that Ener-G egg replacer was our best bet, but we couldn't find it. We'll look again later when we have a little more time. We're not there yet, we're both just planners!

Here's what we did find:

A couple samples of hemp protein powder to see what we like. Irish called me "pothead" when I said that I would be the taste tester since I use it almost every day in a breakfast smoothie. I didn't find that very funny.

But I soon forgot when I picked out a couple delicious sounding hummuses. Or is it hummusi?

The spelling-- hommus instead of hummus-- made me think of the movie where the guy says hommas with a little phlegm behind it. I kept wracking my brain to remember the movie, but I can't. I googled it and asked Irish. Google doesn't know what I'm talking about, and Irish knows exactly but can't remember the movie either. So insert your own joke here since mine didn't pan out. If you know the movie, PLEASE leave it in the comments because it's driving me nuts!

Ok, back to the real star here, the food!

So if I got hummus, Irish got to try gardein. I told him to consider Katie's advice to think of it as another food to try, not as "tastes like chicken." He thought that was a good plan.

He also wanted to try the soy pudding. He's not a fan of soymilk, but he thought this would be tasty. After all, in his wise words, "it has a panda on it, so it's got to be good!"

I also got Greek yogurt for myself. Not vegan, but it's a good option for me until I settle on another lunch item that fits the bill. I also plan to try the tofu/frozen fruit mix that Katie concocted as a faux yogurt.

Chia seeds-- we've hunted these for probably over a year. I'm glad they're stocked in our area finally.

Aaaand then let's say that we had a couple final items that got such rave reviews that they made the list.

Our very first kabocha. I spied it right from the start, but was concerned about cost because I'd heard they were pretty costly. Must have been a sale, though, because it was just $.49/lb! Guilt-free test squash.

And finally, the super starlet. Our priciest splurge, but a sweet woman at WF let us sample before we bought. Irish doesn't like coconut, but even he liked it. I'll be eager to crack it open and start experimenting!

After we finished at Whole Foods, we swung by Target to see if they had any of the cute clearanced shoes that I saw online. Bonus: they're vegan! I didn't have any luck, so I'll have to order online.

Once we got home, I was hungry again and eager to break out some of our new tasty goodies. I decided to try the artichoke spinach hummus. I had 2 whole wheat pitas left, so I went to town.

Umm, or gorged is more like it. Irish didn't have any, so I did all that damage! He finally requested that I please return it to the fridge so we had some left for tomorrow.

Meaning, I want to try some dangit! I returned the last little morsels to the fridge (but only because he asked after I had finished the last bit of pita anyway). More goodness tomorrow!

What is your favorite food splurge? How do you recommend I eat our very first kabocha?

Always wear clean underwear.

2010-01-08T23:51:00.000-06:00

Because you just never know.

Planning ahead. It's important in many aspects of life. It helps you keep your sanity, your job, and stay true to yourself. I'm learning that a fly by the seat of your pants philosophy doesn't pair well with trying to be vegetarian in a meaty environment.

I've relied on frozen vegetarian lunches for the past few weeks so that I could automate my lunches. I've had them for a few years (sad, I know!) and have gotten so used to having 10 seconds of prep in the mornings to bring a lunch to work. Reach into freezer, pull out cardboard box, slip in bag and run. Yep, 10 seconds tops.

So I switched to vegetarian ones, but they're still not all that healthy. Plus they're all cheese covered. So when I forgot about Vegan Thursdays yesterday, I got the little glimmer that I needed to plan ahead.

Then today was a potluck at work. I happened to also forget about that until I showed up at work. Now that I don't want to eat meat, I'm more and more shocked to see how much meat is thrown into everything. Soup, pasta, mac 'n' cheese, queso, tortilla rolls, sandwiches.... everything was meated up! It was shocking! So I did my best to pick out some mac 'n' cheese that didn't include the meat, noodles without the meat, etc.

Next time, I can bring a veggie option, so I know that at least one item is in the clear. So it turns out that the boy scouts did get it right. Always be prepared. And the clean underwear is pretty sound advice, too. Just in case you were on the fence about that one.

Cool smoothings

2010-01-06T23:37:00.002-06:00

Like Cool Runnings, but for smoothies. Cold food on a cold day... that's about as hardcore as I get! And considering exactly how cold it's going to be tomorrow, it's going to be intense.

Smoothie Making

So it was time again for me to whip up a big batch of green monsters, breakfast smoothies in my house. I like to make enough for 3-4 days at a time because I'm NOT a morning person. The most math I do all day is calculating how many minutes I can sleep based on how many minutes it'll take me to get ready that morning and when I have to be at work. Extra sleep in the A.M. is a science in my house.

So whipping up 3 tonight saved me close to 45 minutes cumulatively of sleep. This batch consisted of:

2 handfuls of spinach
1 handful of broccoli
1 handful of carrots
an apple
a banana
a clementine
8 oz soy milk
2 scoops protein powder
3 tsp flax seeds
frozen fruits-- I added frozen blueberries, strawberries, and sweet dark cherries
cinnamon, ginger, ground clove, and dark chile powder to taste

So here's the breakdown:

Meet Kitchen-Aid blender, ready for action.

Add lots of good, healthy, single-item, plant-based ingredients. Toss a lot of fruits and veggies in there and be brave! When I first started to make my own breakfast smoothies, I didn't like raw broccoli. I would always toss in a handful so I knew I got at least one serving a week. Couldn't taste it, and they were always delish. (Now I adore raw brocc!)

*An important note: Adding a citrus fruit helps to cut the thickness. I've tried making the smoothies without, and they were so thick that they became brain freeze inducing.*

For a big batch like this, you can blend down the first half of the ingredients to make room for the rest. Just the lower blend setting, like chop, does the trick before you puree the whole batch together.

Ohhh, look at that beauty... gorgeous! And so humble. They may be green smoothies, but I'm making them blush! Ok, so it may have something to do with the punch of antioxidant berries in the mix.

I think reusable POM tea glasses with seal tight lids are the perfect option for getting fresh smoothies every day straight from the fridge. For all our fancy glasses from the wedding registry, these are our most versatile glasses. I love that I can seal them up, but they're also a great size. Plus we know we can pick more up anytime at the grocery store with the extra bonus of the tasty tea inside!

Like three peas in a pod.

Pretty in pink.

Into the fridge they go, and into the bed I go!

What are your favorite green monster ingredients? Anything you slip in to up your health ante?

Concoctions and detoxes

2010-01-06T00:06:00.004-06:00

An experiment in the making

Driving home from work today, I knew that I'd be on my own for dinner tonight. I had leftover veggies and a little brown rice left to finish, so I decided that would be my meal. I thought it would be nice to have a creamy rice, but I'm trying to wean off cheese. More on that later. This spawned my cockamamie idea to create a cream from some of the leftover black eyed peas. Crazy? Probably. But I was feeling embiggened and brave enough to let my hair down in the kitchen. So here we go:

Leftovers, aka The Great Food Pyramid

Meet

Food Processor

Not looking too bad yet. Maybe I haven't gone insane. So the details: I only had a 1/2 cup of rice left at most, so I just needed a small amount of the cream. Probably less than 1/4 cup of black eyed peas went into the processor with the juice. I then dropped two drizzles of balsamic vinaigrette (yes, I'm obsessed with it!) and a couple Tbsp of soy milk into the mix. I eyeballed the whole thing because I was fairly doubtful that it would be a repeater recipe. Whir it up until it's a creamy mix, then heat it up. Even simpler with an all-leftover combo, pour it over the rice before heating, and it all comes out hot together. Like so:

Creamed black eyed pea rice

So the real test was the taste. While I didn't weep from a huge similarity to creamy cheesy rice dishes, it was actually pretty good. It basically tasted like black eyed peas and rice, but that's not a bad combo and I appreciated the soupiness on such a cold day. While I doubt the occasion will ever occur for me to make it again, I would if I faced a similar leftover dilemma.

For anyone who is interested in recreating this dish, it would qualify for Katie's Vegan Thursdays challenge.

Cheese detox

I think I've had a cheese dependency, in large part due to my husband, Irish. His holdout to veganism is a complete obsession with dairy. It's not unheard of for him to polish off 2 gallons of milk a week. I often find more than one block of cheese listed on the weekly grocery bill. Most nights at about 11pm, you can find him fixing a cheese sammich in the kitchen-- whole grain bread, cheese, fat free mayo. No need to toast, just eat.

So I slipped into his realm to some degree. I was not addicted to it, but I was known to skim a slice from him, allow him to slather some meals with cheese, make grilled cheeses extra thick. As I began researching vegetarian and vegan eating, I knew that the pitfalls of becoming vegan would be twofold: milk and eggs in bakery items, and dairy in... anything my husband creates. Well to be fair, cheese is rampant in anything my husband makes AND in many restaurant items.

While I am still eating cheese in items that come that way (I'm guilty of eating frozen prepared meals for lunch), I am not eating it intentionally where I can avoid it. Fajitas without the cheese (and without the meat), veggies without melted cheese, etc. I bought a pepper jack almond cheese for us to try, but I've started to get stumped on how to use it since I've weaned off it. I've noticed the same with meat. I just don't really care to eat it anymore. So the detox continues... less cheese for me.

Food Buzz update

I may be a little slow to sort all of this out, but at least I found my personal link on FoodBuzz. For anyone who wants to be friends, here I am! I'm very up in the air about whether to be come a featured publisher or not. So many people are, but it doesn't quite sit right with me that you have to sign a confidentiality agreement before you even get the tiniest of details. If anybody would like to send me an email to talk about it, I would appreciate your input. (Please delete the tail end of the email address to successfully send the email-- just trying to reduce spammers!)

What was your biggest creative success in the kitchen? What's the biggest food vice that you've reduced in your life?