My lunch: October 3, 2011

We got a butternut squash in our CSA, and I'm a little embarrassed to say that I had no idea WTF to do with it. Mom never really made squash when I was growing up, and it's never been one of my favorite things. So I spent over an hour looking up recipes, trying to find something I wouldn't definitely hate. This recipe (Pasta with Butternut Squash, Sage and Pine Nuts) looked really promising, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it. Chip said it tasted like something from, "a restaurant. A fancy restaurant. But better, because I can eat it like this." He was slouched on the couch, with the bowl on his chest. No, I guess you can't do that at a restaurant, a fancy restaurant.

I added 10 ounces of organic spinach to the noodles in their last minute of cooking, to add some more color and nutrients.



Whole wheat rotini with CSA butternut squash, organic spinach, organic pine nuts, and Parmesan, strawberries, and grapes.

My lunch: September 30, 2011

On Thursday night, we had what we call "kids' dinner" at our house. It involves fake meat (usually some kind of fake chicken, like vegetarian chicken nuggets), some kind of veggie (often broccoli), and mac and cheese. We got a 15-pack of Annie's organic mac and cheese at Costco (total impulse buy), and I figured we needed to start using it up! I grilled the Quorn cutlet with some spices and yum! I swear it's just like chicken, but I know better than to trust my 8-year-old memory of meat now!



Marinated and grilled Quorn cutlet, Annie's organic mac and cheese, organic Cajun cashews, organic carrots, and a CSA pear.

My lunch: September 27, 2011

My version of this lunch has a perfect little plum from our CSA. Unfortunately, we can't eat these before they go bad, but the ones we get are awesome! I also packed some Cajun cashews. These are sold in bulk at the co-op down the street from us. I have no idea what's on them, but it's mild, lightly salty, and has just a tiny hint of sweetness. They are a great snack when I want something salty and spicy and can convince myself to lay off the crab chips.



CSA apple, CSA plum, organic Cajun cashews, homemade vegan pumpkin bread, and homemade pizza with whole wheat crust.

Chip's lunch: September 27, 2011

The latest Clean Eating Magazine has a really tempting photo of a pizza taking up two pages...I couldn't resist. I used my usual crust recipe (doubled of course, so I froze half for later), and their sauce recipe. It was really easy: strained tomatoes, garlic, onion powder, red wine vinegar, and spices. This is a super easy recipe, inexpensive per serving, and very tasty!



CSA apple, banana, dried cranberries, pecans, homemade vegan pumpkin bread, and homemade pizza with whole wheat crust.

My lunch: September 26, 2011

When we got a pumpkin in our CSA, I was excited to make my own pumpkin puree. I'd meant to do it last year, and I just never got around to it. This time, I did it right, and it turned out so well! I halved the pumpkin and scooped out the seeds and pulp. I baked the two pieces for almost an hour. When it was done, I just scooped out the flesh and tossed it in the food processor. It turned out lighter in color and it smelled less strongly than the stuff from a can, but it tasted divine. I used it in this pumpkin bread and froze the rest (to be used in another tasty pumpkin recipe next week).



Pineapple cashew quinoa with organic quinoa, organic edamame, organic local red bell pepper, and organic broccoli, organic kiwi, organic Cajun cashews, homemade vegan pumpkin bread, and an apple from our CSA

Chip's lunch: September 26, 2011

I hate apologizing for my crap camera, but here I go again. It takes really unfortunate pictures indoors, but I didn't have daylight to take this photo!

This stir fry was really good, and it got me to break out the quinoa, which I had sort of forgotten about. A little bit of blog browsing the other day brought me to this recipe: Pineapple Cashew Quinoa. I discovered over Christmas last year that not only am I no longer allergic to pineapple, but it is DELICIOUS! I am so in love with pineapple now! I love sweet and salty things too (thank you, Jeni's salty caramel ice cream), and this seemed like the perfect way to do it. We both liked it a lot, and it was a nice, summery, packed-with-protein meal.



Pineapple cashew quinoa with organic quinoa, organic edamame, organic local red bell pepper, and organic broccoli, banana, organic macadamia nuts, organic Sultana golden raisins, homemade vegan pumpkin bread, and an apple from our CSA.

My lunch: August 22, 2011

My version of this lunch includes some local Feta cheese (very tangy, and very delicious) and strawberries. I've been eating strawberries every morning with breakfast for the past two months. I think I'm about ready to move on, but for a while now, strawberries are one of the only fruits I've felt like eating. We got some great ones while they were in season here in Ohio, but I suppose I should try something else for now.



Salad with organic redleaf lettuce, organic carrots, local Feta, CSA heirloom tomatoes, and marinated/grilled Quorn cutlet, organic strawberries, raw almonds, and 1/2 a PB&J on organic whole wheat bread with natural peanut butter and organic strawberry preserves

My lunch: July 19, 2011

My version of this lunch has some local blackberries in it instead of the cauliflower (which is delicious, by the way). I never really ate blackberries growing up, and have learned to love them in the past two years as an Ohioan. They're really prevalent here in the summer, and they've become one of my favorite local fruits.



Ginger soy tofu and edamame stir fry with organic tofu, organic edamame, organic cashews, local green beans, and organic bell pepper, organic brown rice, pecans, organic Sultana golden raisins, local blackberries, and a CSA apple.

Chip's lunch: July 19, 2011

This is another recipe that we've tried from Clean Eating Magazine. I've found that most stir fries seem to taste the same after a while...soy sauce, garlic, ginger, veggies. So what's new? This one includes a few unusual ingredients that make it unique (honey and mustard, for example), and we both appreciated the change. Of course, I didn't tell Chip this one has mustard in it until after he ate it, because he thinks he hates mustard, but he might have to reconsider now!

Since I started working, I've been doing my best to plan meals for the week each Sunday. It's a lot of work, both in the planning part (leafing through blogs, cookbooks, etc) and the preparation part. But it makes life so much easier during the week, that it's absolutely worth it. I think part of what makes it so helpful is that I do some prep work on Sunday (i.e. for this recipe, I chopped veggies, pressed tofu, and made the sauce), but also that I just don't have to think about things during the week. I've got my little list of lunches and dinners for each day, and I can just fly through it all without a second thought.



Ginger soy tofu and edamame stir fry with organic tofu, organic edamame, organic cashews, local green beans, and organic bell pepper, organic brown rice, pecans, organic Sultana golden raisins, local graffiti cauliflower, and a CSA apple.

My lunch: July 18, 2011

Here's the Katie version of this lunch. Mine has a pear in it; Chip won't eat pears. He is so missing out!



Rotini with homemade pesto and squash/zucchini from Laura's garden, CSA cherries, raw almonds, organic Packham pear, and a salad with CSA lettuce, organic mushrooms, and local pea sprouts.

Chip's lunch: July 18, 2011

OK so it has been forever. Life has gotten crazy, in ways good and bad, and blogging (and even making lunches) has taken a back seat. We're doing some catch up here for now, and I hope to be better at keeping up with this, as long as more things don't come up. You know, things like...

-Chip traveling for work

-Fostering massive quantities of kittens (they were returned to the shelter 3 weeks ago so they could be adopted)



-Renovating the (only) bathroom (which means using the toilet at the market down the street, showering at the gym, washing my hair in the kitchen sink, etc)



-Our cat, Max, being diagnosed with Feline Interstitial Cystitis



-Fostering lots of dogs, like these guys:

Darcass the Nite ("Nite")



Woody the cocker spaniel mix:



JA's Omar ("Alonzo")



-Throwing a 4-day long wedding at our house over Labor Day



-Cal getting half of his left ear bitten off in a freak accident (this required two nights at the vet and two surgeries)



So yeah. Things have been busy! We're hoping that life takes it easy on us for a while now; we're eager to get back to normal.

Here is Chip's lunch from July 18. On the 17th, we had dinner at our friends' house, and they sent some leftovers home with us, including this amazing homemade pesto pasta, with basil from the CSA we share with them. Yum!



Rotini with homemade pesto and squash/zucchini from Laura's garden, CSA cherries, raw almonds, organic Sultana golden raisins, local apple, and a salad with CSA lettuce, organic mushrooms, and local pea sprouts.

My lunch: July 5, 2011

Someone at work the other day had a turkey and avocado sandwich and I got really jealous. It's just not the same for vegetarians! I got some Tofurkey veggie lunchmeat and made some wraps, and they turned out pretty well. I got some beautiful lettuce from our garden; I bought the Revolution lettuce seedlings at the farmers' market, and they grew really well! It's a nice dark red color, and aside from looking pretty, it tastes fantastic!



Whole wheat rollups with vegan smoked turkey, avocado, Campari tomato, Revolution lettuce from our garden, and organic tahini, organic vanilla soy yogurt with CSA blueberries, raw almonds, raspberries from the farmers' market, and and organic D'Anjou pear.

My lunch: June 27, 2011

I know I've mentioned Fudha here before, but I have to call them out again: I love that they're all about local businesses, and while they've recently merged with another company called Faveroo, that just means that we get even more local deals.

A few months ago, I bought a huge ($50) Fudha for Wellness Forum Foods. I'd gotten their prepared foods at the Clintonville Community Market, and was excited to try some new vegan stuff. I sent Chip over and he asked the chef (who also just happens to live 2 blocks from us) to just use up the whole certificate with whatever he had on hand that was tasty. We got lots of stuff, including a tempeh sandwich, Mexican split pea soup, oven fried tofu (SO delicious!), and these spicy Thai peanut noodles. They have a spicy, gingery sauce that I just love. They can be eaten warm or cold: cold is nice and refreshing in the summer.



Spicy Thai peanut noodles, organic vanilla soy yogurt with CSA blueberries, raw almonds, organic D'Anjou pear, and organic strawberries.

My lunch: June 22, 2011

The farmers' market has been so good to us this summer! While our garden has gotten huge without producing any fruit, the farmers' market is always full of tasty local treats, like this cucumber, the pepper jack cheese, and the raspberries in the scone. In attempting a garden for the second year in a row (and seeming to fail again...but we'll see about that in time), I have such an appreciation for the farmers at our market. I guess next year I will either need to commit and spend some time learning to garden (and actually gardening), or skip it altogether.



Organic Gala apple, CSA cucumber, fruit leather, homemade raspberry scone with lemon icing, local pepper Jack cheese, and whole grain crackers.

Chip's lunch: November 19, 2010

This is our last lunch before a long break. We will be in Maryland (and Virginia, and Pennsylvania twice) over Thanksgiving, and two days after we return, Chip will be embarking on another marathon business trip to California and the Canary Islands.



Homemade vegan chili, steamed organic brown rice with organic peas and organic corn, dried organic cranberries, organic Thompson raisins, banana, and a CSA Melrose apple.

Chip's lunch: November 9, 2010

A dilemma we face frequently: there's just a little bit of something left...what to do with it? We had a few tablespoons of pesto left. Not enough to put on noodles, which is our normal use for it. So I made what I always make when we have things to use up: rollups. I can put anything in a whole wheat wrap, and Chip will LOVE it. A few fruits and veggies round out a tasty lunch.



CSA Melrose apple, Navel orange, organic Thompson raisins, organic raw cashews, organic steamed cauliflower, and whole wheat rollups with pesto, organic redleaf lettuce, organic carrot, and Roma tomato from our garden.

Chip's lunch: November 8, 2010

This is the first time that Chip packed his whole lunch himself, and took the photo. Of course, he packed up leftovers from the dinner that I prepared, but he still did it himself. This rice is Chip's favorite. It has surpassed his childhood memories of chicken flavored Rice-a-Roni, which I never thought possible. Fried rice with lots of salt and butter...it's hard to beat that!

I breaded the tofu with this seasoning. We don't have it often, and it's a really special treat for Chip. He usually doesn't like peanut flavored stuff, or spicy stuff, and this is both. Tofu has to bake for a really long time to get that nice chewy texture, but it's definitely worth it.

Also, I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce our latest greyhound foster, Gabe Cuda ("Cuda"). He is a baby by retired racer standards, as he broke his leg at 17 months old. Greyhounds typically begin their careers at 18 months, so he has never officially raced (though he did schooling races). He's in some pain from a surgically repaired fracture in his right hock, but we are working on scheduling him to get some of his hardware removed. In the meantime, he is enjoying the fluffy beds in our house, and the companionship of our dog Cal.





And lunch:



Brown rice pilaf, CSA Gold Rush apple, organic Thompson raisins, organic dark chocolate chips, organic dried cranberries, steamed organic broccoli with sea salt, black pepper, and lime, more broccoli, and baked organic spicy peanut tofu.

Chip's lunch: November 4, 2010

I fired up the grill again for Wednesday's dinner. I had been in the mood for Red Robin (specifically the Whiskey River burger, sans mayo, with a Boca patty), but there isn't one really nearby. Plus, it's expensive. So...I made some homemade burgers that were almost as good. We had one left over for lunch, and I used our last homegrown tomato for this lunch. The nights have been getting below 30* here, and even covering the garden with a plastic sheet has not protected the plants, unfortunately. So...our garden was good to us, but it has now retired. Can't wait for next summer's garden!



Vegan Boca patty with Tillamook Cheddar cheese on a whole wheat roll, Roma tomato from our garden, organic redleaf lettuce, homemade clean oatmeal cookies, banana, and a CSA Gold Rush apple.

Chip's lunch: November 2, 2010

I made sure we had plenty of leftovers from dinner so Chip could have a nice lunch. But...he packed this up himself! He even took the photo. This isn't what I would've packed or how I would've packed it, but he loved it, and that's what matters!

Also, I made turnips for the first time ever. I'd eaten them a few times growing up, but Chip had never had them. I found this recipe and veganized it. Chip enjoyed it and said he never would've guessed that he wasn't eating potatoes.



Gardein scallopini (grilled with Cajun spices), steamed asparagus, banana, Clif Builder bar, homemade trail mix (organic raw cashews, raw almonds, organic chocolate chips, organic Thompson raisins), and mashed CSA turnips.

Chip's lunch: November 1, 2010

Yep, it's definitely November here. I went for a run this evening and it was cloudy and 43*. The entire time, all I could think of was some warm food for dinner. As soon as I got home, I heated up some lentil soup and baked this asparagus. It was nice and warm and filling and wintry.

I love this easy asparagus recipe that my friend Christina invented while she was here visiting last December. Spray a cookie sheet with olive oil (I use my trusty Misto), lay out the asparagus in a single layer on the pan, spray the asparagus with olive oil, and throw on whatever you want. I used organic panko breadcrumbs, Parmesan, sea salt, black pepper, and a touch of paprika.

Oh, and we got a new kind of apple this weekend in our CSA! While I enjoyed trying various kinds of apples that we picked up at the farmers' market last year from Ochs Fruit Farm, it's also neat to try even more kinds via our CSA. Last time, we got Northern Spy apples, and this time it's Gold Rush apples. The Northern Spies are very firm and fairly sweet, while the Gold Rushes are crispy and tangy, almost like a Granny Smith. Yum!

And finally, I made some clean oatmeal cookies tonight. I didn't have any eggs on hand, and wanted to see if I could veganize the recipe (the only non-vegan part is the egg). I used a flax egg instead of egg white (thank you for the idea, Sarah!), and used 1/4 cup applesauce and 1/4 cup oil instead of 1/2 cup oil, to reduce the fat. It turned out surprisingly well! Now that I know I can do this recipe vegan and lower fat, I think it'll be making a few more appearances.



Baked asparagus with Parmesan and bread crumbs, homemade clean vegan oatmeal cookies, organic dried cherries, CSA Gold Rush apple, and homemade vegan lentil soup.