I have been on a Mandarin orange kick lately, and thought I'd have Chip give them one more shot. And...they came back home with him after work. I don't get what's not to like! They're sweet, a little sour, bite-sized, and mild. I love them. Chip is just not a fan, and I guess it's time to accept it.
He did, however, enjoy the vegan Snickerdoodles I packed. I've been making lots of sweets, and while I'm not sure what's prompting it, Chip sure isn't complaining. I used this recipe, and while I followed it exactly, it didn't turn out quite like I'd hoped. They were tasty, but they were a tad on the salty side, and did have that floury, chewy texture like my mom's Snickerdoodles. I mean, it's not like we didn't eat them; they're long gone now :)
Homemade fried rice with organic broccoli and organic tofu, homemade vegan Snickerdoodles, pecans, dried cranberries, Mandarin oranges, and an organic Gala apple.
Last week I had Chip stop at Whole Foods on his way home from work. I forget now what I sent him for, but I did tell him to feel free to pick up some of their house-made pesto if he wanted to. He did buy some, and told me how much he likes it; I had always thought he just kind of tolerates it. So, I whipped that pesto out on a busy morning, and ended up with this creation.
On a non-lunch-related note, I had the spinach on hand because I've been drinking a green monster every day for breakfast or lunch. A green monster is a smoothie with pretty much whatever ingredients you want, plus a big handful of spinach. You can't taste the spinach, but it adds some neat color, and more importantly, lots of nutrients. I make mine with a banana, a scoop of protein powder, ice, spinach, and some organic frozen berries (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries). Yum!
Organic Fuji apple, organic red bell pepper with spicy red pepper hummus, raw almonds, dried cranberries, Kashi oatmeal dark chocolate cookies, and organic whole wheat tri-color noodles with pesto, organic spinach, and organic tomato.
I was running short on time and ideas this morning, when I remembered that I'd made a trip to Trader Joe's earlier in the week. Chip loves their fake meat, and the "chicken-less stuffed cutlet with black beans and corn" is always a hit. It's an easy way for me to up the protein in his lunch by a lot.
Organic Fuji apple, steamed asparagus with Parmesan cheese, pecans, dried cranberries, Kashi oatmeal dark chocolate chip cookies, and Trader Joe's chicken-less stuffed cutlet with black beans and corn.
I haven't been doing much cooking lately, but this weekend I got a bee in my bonnet to make pierogies. My dad's family is Slovak, and I grew up eating my Nan's amazing pierogies, halupki, pagachi, haluska, nut roll, poppy seed roll, and sauerkraut soup. OK, maybe I didn't eat the sauerkraut soup, but the rest was always amazing. I decided I could make pierogies...I mean, why not? I found a vegan recipe and ten hours later...pierogies! These things took forever to make, and the whole time, Chip and I were like, "how did this become a thing that people made, when it takes so damn long?" But the results were worth it. I added some chopped chard for some vitamins and such, as well as a touch of garlic, plus some cheese in Chip's pierogies. Chip was impressed, and has been enjoying them a lot.
The onions also make it amazing. These onions turned out great. My family also serves pierogies with onion, but it's more like melted butter with some onion in it. Butter is a condiment to Slovaks. And it's in everything, from soup to dinner to dessert. So this was like a taste of my Slovak roots, minus much of the fat, but still with plenty of flavor.
Homemade harira, organic applesauce, raw cashews, Kashi oatmeal cookies with dark chocolate, caramelized onions, and whole wheat pierogies with organic potato, Tillamook Cheddar, and organic red chard.
Our local co-op has had some really awesome avocados lately, and we've definitely been taking advantage. I've also been meaning to get some alfalfa sprouts, and finally picked some up on my last trip. These are produced right here in Columbus, and it's nice to be able to get *something* local at this time of year!
Sandwich on organic whole wheat bread with organic avocado, local alfalfa sprouts, Campari tomato, and organic redleaf lettuce, navel orange, organic flame raisins, homemade vegan peanut butter cookies, and homemade harira.
Have you ever had harira? Lavash Cafe, one of our favorite local restaurants, always has tons of vegetarian options, usually including their soup of the day. In December they had harira, which they called "spicy vegetable soup." I tried it two more times before finally asking them, "what the heck is this delicious stuff called?" They told me, but they wouldn't give me their recipe. I found a lot of recipes online, many of which involved meat and spices I don't have (and probably wouldn't use otherwise). This recipe fit our needs, and it turned out so well! It has garbanzos and couscous for protein, and tons of veggies. It has a tangy tomato base, with a slow heat from chipotle and paprika. It can be customized with toppings, like harissa paste, dates and raisins, or chopped hardboiled egg. This made a giant pot, and there's plenty of harira left in our freezer.
Homemade vegan harira, banana, raw almonds, organic flame raisins, organic dark chocolate chips, and homemade vegan peanut butter cookies.
It's fried rice day again! I confess that I always make it same way: Trader Joe's fried rice with sauteed tofu and steamed broccoli. We were running low on broccoli, so I *gasp* threw in some green beans! Don't worry; it tasted just fine. We're still very much enjoying our Twin Oaks tofu, and are so glad it's available in Ohio now.
Homemade fried rice with organic tofu, broccoli, and green beans, homemade vegan peanut butter cookies, pecans, watermelon, and an organic Jonagold apple.
For the past few days, I've been trying to plan our garden for the summer. I know what worked (tomatoes) what didn't (not a single strawberry grew), and what failed miserably (zucchini + squash bugs = disaster), and am hoping to bring some experience and effort this year to make our garden really awesome. All this thinking about veggies made me really want some summery produce! I picked up some watermelon, plus some beautiful lettuce and bell pepper. This looks like a really summery lunch, no? The weather has been teasing us lately (it's supposed to be 65* today, and not one week ago we were seeing 3* overnight), and I'm so ready for summer now!
Salad with organic Boston lettuce, organic corn, organic black beans, Campari tomato, organic red bell pepper, and organic avocado, homemade vegan peanut butter cookies (Tasha's recipe), raw almonds, dried cranberries, and watermelon.
I got onto a big vegan kick yesterday, even before I watched the latest "Oprah" (with the 7-day Vegan Challenge). For the record, I found it informative and interesting, and appreciated that veganism was presented in an accessible way.
However, I was annoyed with how glib Michael Pollan was about eating humanely raised meat. He said something like animals can live on farms happily and have one bad day. Seriously? Slaughter is just a "bad day?" Kathy Freston followed that up with saying that she doesn't feel comfortable looking at an animal and saying that its suffering and life are worth less than her appetite. She said it doesn't sit right with her soul, and I agree. For a show about veganism, it sure came off as meat-centric, and they definitely skipped any discussion of the environmental impacts of raising animals for meat. Obviously I understand that there are good and bad ways to go about eating meat, and I never EVER criticize people for eating it. But, I do think that a vegan or vegetarian diet can benefit people, animals, and the planet, and it's worth looking into.
Anyway, off of my high horse. I saw this tempeh at the local co-op, and when I saw that it said, "fakin' bacon," I knew I had to have it. I was prepared for it to be nothing like bacon, because really...what is like bacon, except bacon? I fried it in a small amount of olive oil, and it turned out wonderfully! It definitely didn't feel just like bacon, but it had that salty, smoky quality to it that bacon has. I made it into a BLT (TLT?) for Chip today. Neither of us can stand mayonnaise, so I spread some avocado on it instead. I had a half sandwich for lunch, and Chip had the whole one below. We both loved it! I'm really glad to have found one more vegan food that isn't just OK, but is great!
In other news, our latest foster greyhound went home this past Saturday, so we have been foster-less for a few days. For my birthday last month, Chip gave me the gift of fostering kittens! We haven't fostered kittens in three years now, and I really miss it. They are so cute, and relatively easy. We were approved by a local rescue, and have just been waiting on "the call." This morning we got an e-mail that their shelter had lost power in this crazy storm, and they needed temporary fosters for all the animals until power was restored. I hopped right in the car and drove over; I picked up a 3-year-old hound mix named Tamale, and a litter of three 8-week-old kittens.
Here's the pup. She has super-long houndy ears, and is a very sweet little thing. She was pulled from a rural shelter here in Ohio.
And here's one of the kittens. How cute is she?!
And lunch:
Sandwich on organic whole wheat bread with organic tempeh, organic avocado, Campari tomato, and organic Boston lettuce, homemade vegan blondies, raw almonds, organic applesauce, and a banana.
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.
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.
We had some friends over for dinner on Sunday evening and decided to do the tofu sandwiches again. Fortunately, these friends are pretty adventurous (or easygoing) and were happy to eat our "hippie food," as my brother calls it. Laura brought over some triple chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookies for dessert and they were amazing! Chip loved them and these were the only ones left after our friends went home.
Half sandwich on organic whole wheat bread with grilled organic tofu (with Cajun spices), CSA kale, organic redleaf lettuce, and Roma tomatoes from our garden, triple chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookies, raw almonds, raw organic cashews, banana, and grilled veggies (zucchini from our garden, purple bell pepper from our garden, CSA green bell pepper, red onion, and organic mushrooms).
Another "cleaning out the refrigerator" kind of lunch here. The only thing we didn't have on hand already is the bread. I don't eat much bread, so I don't keep any around while Chip is out of town. I bought a small loaf today and if we have too much by the time we're supposed to leave for Maryland, perhaps we'll have some sandwiches in the car!
This is another lunch that I got completely assembled except for one container that I just couldn't fill! I gave Chip the option of peanut butter and pretzels or quinoa. You can see what he picked!
Sandwich on local organic whole wheat bread, organic avocado, organic tomato, lettuce from our garden, and organic baby spinach, organic Fuji apple, Speculaas, milk chocolate from the Netherlands, organic raw cashews, organic crispy almonds, pretzel snaps, natural peanut butter, organic corn, and local green beans.
We're back! Chip returned safe and sound from the Netherlands. He got to be at the first stage of the Tour de France, which was an awesome experience. He had a productive and exhausting trip. He saw lots of bikes, ate tons of tasty food, visited his uncles (who live in Den Haag), and even met a greyhound!
Which reminds me. While Chip was gone, another foster fell into my lap (meaning: Chip wasn't here to tell me no). Meet PTL Black Prize. He is a big, gentle, sweet boy, and he fits in here so well. He came to our house last Saturday, and it was the first time I'd had four dogs here. He's really easy, and I think Cal likes having a male buddy around. In other greyhound news, our foster Queenly will be adopted this weekend, and we're really excited about it!
Here's tomorrow's lunch. For the next few days I imagine things will be pretty boring here, because Chip and I are headed to Maryland next week to visit our families. Impending vacation = eating the perishable food that's around and not buying more. The one wrench in these plans is that we pick up our CSA this Saturday. Perhaps Monday we'll have a lunch full of apricots, cherries, lettuce, chard, and sage. Unfortunately there's only one thing on that list that Chip eats. Then again, Branny hides foods her husband doesn't like...maybe I could make some kind of smoothie out of those things? I'm sure it would taste awesome. Ha!
Local green beans, organic steamed edamame with sea salt, Kashi trail mix bar, organic "crispy almonds," organic Sultana golden raisins, organic raw cashews, Speculaas (Dutch cookies that Chip absolutely loves), barbecue sauce, and Gardein 7-Grain Crispy Tenders.
OK, so I know there's a lot of sugar here. But it's a special lunch. For a special man. Who's having a really rough time at work. He has earned these cookies and this chocolate! I don't think we've ever bought Milanos since we've been together (five years), but they are one of Chip's favorites. I picked him up a pack while he was at work yesterday and sneaked some into his lunch. They really made his day, and I'm glad to be able to do that with his lunch!
In all seriousness, though, I have been packing some sugary lunches. Even though it's from natural sources (raisins, fruit, etc.), it probably is a bit much. Though you can't tell from this lunch or the next one, I'm trying to be cognizant of the sugar content of Chip's lunches, and hope to reduce it a bit.
Homemade banana bread, raw almonds, Godiva extra dark chocolate truffle, organic Sultana golden raisins, Annie's mac and cheese, Milano cookies, banana, sandwich on local whole wheat bread with Tofurkey deli slices, organic local pepper jack cheese, organic red pepper, and organic redleaf lettuce.
We've made it to another Friday! I was really excited to get this lunch packed while it was still light outside, so I got a beautiful photo. The salad in particular looks so pretty! Once again, I used a bunch of the veggies from our Nature's Garden box. We don't usually keep so many different vegetables on hand, so it was nice to be able to make such a colorful salad.
We will get our first CSA box on Saturday, and I'm hoping to whip up some new and different recipes next week with what's inside. It looks like it'll just be a surprise every other week, and the contents will probably take us out of our veggie comfort zone (aka bananas, apples, and lettuce). I'm excited, and hope that Chip will be adventurous with a few new foods!
I'm hoping there's more cucumber in our CSA future. I've been on a cucumber kick lately, and I put it in everything. I especially like a few thin slices in a glass of water. It's cool and refreshing, and that hint of flavor makes it easier to drink more water. I had cucumber water at my monthly Red Door Spa appointments in Baltimore back in the day (oh, the days pre-home ownership...when I had $80+ a month to spend on waxing). A friend from California was always drinking water with all kinds of stuff in it (strawberries, raspberries, citrus, etc), and I guess I just picked it up.
Leftover Newman's Own pizza, organic banana, Double Stuf Oreos, organic trail mix (all organic: raw almonds, cashews, roasted & salted sunflower seeds, and Sultana golden raisins), and a salad with organic redleaf lettuce, organic cucumber, Campari tomato, organic red pepper, and organic carrot.
Some tasty dinner leftovers and a very special treat in this lunch. I made my usual fried rice last night, but this time I made it with Gardein Beefless Tips instead of tofu. Chip really loved it; I thought it was pretty good. We love the "chicken" Gardein products and thought we'd try the "beef." The texture wasn't quite right (too soft), but it tasted pretty good (as good as any fake steak we've tried so far).
Homemade fried rice with organic broccoli and Gardein beefless tips, 1/2 of a PB&J with natural peanut butter on local whole wheat bread, organic Sultana golden raisins, Double Stuf Oreos, Navel orange, and an organic Gala apple.
I made this lunch wanting to fill it with love, support, and happiness for Chip. He's been having a rough week at work, and it's only going to get more stressful on Saturday, when he heads to California for three weeks. I hope the Teddy Grahams and Kool-Aid put a smile on his face and help him get through the day.
Homemade pad thai with organic tofu and broccoli, Navel orange, organic Thompson raisins, Kool-Aid singles packet, organic fair trade dark chocolate with almonds, organic cashews, raw almonds, Teddy Grahams, and an organic Gala apple.
So yesterday's "turkey" rollups were such a huge hit that I decided to make another meat analogue for today's lunch. Chip liked yesterday's rollups so much that he took a photo of himself enjoying them with his cell phone and sent it to me. This lunch is mainly leftovers from tonight's dinner; we've made this exact same dinner several times, and it makes 3 perfect servings: both of us for dinner, and Chip for lunch. Having leftovers makes making lunch so easy.
Steamed broccoli, organic Golden Delicious apple, organic fair trade dark chocolate, organic Thompson raisins, Mi-Del ginger snaps, brown rice pilaf, and VegeUSA vegan pepper steak.
Happy Friday! This Friday lunch has tons of fruits and veggies, so I decided to add in a special treat. Teddy Grahams have been a Chip favorite for years. We never buy them, and I'm not really sure why. But I picked some up the other day and Chip had a huge smile on his face when I pulled them out of the grocery bag.
In other news, Roxie went back home to her family today. She was SO excited to see her dad when he arrived. She was jumping all over him, which I have absolutely never seen her do. It was adorable. And our little Heidi went to her forever home tonight. Her family is super excited about adopting her, and they are wonderful people. And how could they resist this face?
Cal is mystified as to where his buddies have gone, and he's been curled up on the couch in a little ball all evening.
And lunch. I squeezed a little bit of lemon juice onto the apple because it started to turn brown as soon as I cut it.
Sandwich on local whole wheat bread with roasted portobello, Cheddar, organic spring mix, and spices, watermelon, Teddy Grahams, banana, and an organic Rainier apple.
