My lunch: June 11, 2012

My lunch is pretty much the same as Chip's, but I get yogurt instead of a brownie (more protein, plus Chip hates yogurt), and raspberries instead of an apple (tastier, plus Chip hates raspberries).

Life is good here in the VL household.  After a year at a job I didn't so much care for, I landed an awesome job at an amazing company, and I start tomorrow.  All the pets (3 cats and 2 dogs) are happy and healthy, and we have a foster greyhound too.  Chip is in town for the next few weeks, and we've been enjoying a lot of time together.  We've both been doing CrossFit at a box downtown, and it's been amazing for both of us.  I've lost about 20 pounds since October, and feel fantastic.  I'd like to maintain now, and have really upped my protein consumption to help with that.  And I'm still running 30+ miles a week, since my running buddy is an Australian Kelpie, after all!

Those of you who are familiar with CrossFit are probably familiar with the paleo diet.  Don't worry...I haven't gone all caveman yet.  The owner of our box loves to rib me for being vegetarian, and he comments that vegetarian athletes could be even better if they'd just eat meat, but I don't plan to start!  I can get plenty of plant-based protein, and while it's not "paleo," it seems to work for me.  I admit, though, that all the paleo talk has worn off on me a bit, and I've gotten a few recipes from CrossFit friends.  You'll see at least one later this week (spinach, strawberry, and walnut salad), and might notice a few differences in lunches now compared to a few months ago, but I promise...I'm still the same old vegetarian!



Fried rice with organic tofu and organic broccoli, Chobani blood orange Greek yogurt, raspberries, and a salad with organic lettuce, organic spinach, organic carrot, plum tomato, and walnuts.

Chip's lunch: June 11, 2012

We're back in action!  For now, I suppose.  Apparently I'm not very good at keeping up with this thing, so we'll see how long this lasts.

I start a new job tomorrow, and I'm extremely excited.  In my excitement, I did a meal plan for the week, which I haven't done since, oh, October.  This means I have lunches planned for the rest of the week.  Usually if I have a plan like this, I stick to it, so I might go on a week-long blogging binge.  I have no idea what my motivation will look like next week.

I made this week's meal plan by looking up the one I did for this week last year.  I modified it a little bit, and noticed that vegan coffee cake was in a few of the lunches I packed.  Since I didn't happen to make that this week, and since I wanted something a little healthier, I decided to finally try black bean brownies.  I used this recipe, minus the chocolate chips, plus probably a teaspoon of baking soda, and they turned out fantastically!  They're not super fudgy, but they have great texture and flavor, and Chip actually likes them.  I was seriously shocked.  Because really.  Beans + chocolate = delicious?  I wasn't so sure beforehand, but now I think I'll be making these again.



Fried rice with organic tofu and organic broccoli, homemade black bean brownies, organic raisins, raw almonds, macadamias, Honeycrisp apple, and a salad with organic lettuce, organic spinach, organic carrot, and plum tomato.

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.

Chip's lunch: April 27, 2011

So somehow, I made it to 28 years old without ever having stromboli. Chip is always telling me about how he used to eat it in high school, bought from the school cafeteria. I had a frozen homemade pizza dough in the freezer, and decided to find a stromboli recipe online. I actually didn't really know what stromboli was, except that it was kind of like pizza. So once I found this recipe, I was able to adapt it a bit. I filled my half with sauteed mushrooms and spinach, plus some marinara sauce. I added organic mozzarella to Chip's half. He came home from work and it was in the oven and he was so surprised! He's been talking about stromboli for years, so to finally have it was out of the ordinary. We both really liked it, and the leftovers kept really well.



Homemade stromboli with whole wheat crust, organic spinach, organic portobellos, organic mozzarella, and Newman's Own marinara sauce, homemade split pea soup, organic raw cashews, raw almonds, homemade vegan key lime pie, and an organic Fuji apple.

Chip's lunch: April 25, 2011

For some reason this weekend, I decided I needed key lime pie. I decided to make one, and this recipe looked delicious, and, more importantly, easy. I (not surprisingly) couldn't find key limes in Ohio, so I used regular ones: five of them (much more than the recipe called for). It tasted fantastic, and was so easy! Next time, I will try the homemade crust too.



Sandwich on organic whole wheat bread with spicy red pepper hummus, organic redleaf lettuce, organic spinach, organic red bell pepper, red onion, and organic portobellos, banana, Veggie booty, homemade vegan key lime pie, and an organic Fuji apple.

Chip's lunch: April 13, 2011

One thing that Chip has been a fan of for many years is a good breakfast sandwich. When he worked at a bike shop as a teenager, he would stop at Dunkin Donuts every morning, and they'd have his breakfast ready for him: a large coffee with cream and sugar, and a bagel with sausage, egg, and cheese. He ate this pretty much every day, along with plenty of Ho Hos, pizza, and frozen chicken nuggets. When we were bike messengers, we would stop at Song's Deli in Baltimore, this tiny little hole in the wall on the ground floor of 10 S Charles Street. We would get bagels with egg and cheese, and Mrs. Song mixed the eggs in a bowl and microwaved them to cook them. So...taking a cue from Mrs. Song, I made this bagel sandwich with two big pastured eggs, and a big handful of chopped veggies. Two minutes in the microwave, and lunch was quick, easy, and healthy.

Here it is all scrambled up:



And as lunch:



Whole wheat bagel with pastured local eggs, organic spinach, red onion, organic tomato, and organic red bell pepper, organic Fuji apple, organic raw cashews, dried cherries, and Annie's whole wheat pretzels.

Chip's lunch: April 12, 2011

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.

Chip's lunch: March 31, 2011

Ah, we've been busy since Chip was gone. Just before he left, we took in a litter of orphan foster kittens. Four two-weekers with no mom. We bottle fed them around the clock, and once Chip left, I was operating on some serious sleep deprivation. Seriously, I don't know how actual parents do it. This was traumatic enough for me. Then, we picked up a Lab-mix girl who came in on a transport from Springfield, Missouri. The shelter there burned down, so she'd been living in an outdoor run. On top of that, it's a heartstick shelter, and, well...just google heartstick, and you'll understand why we couldn't let her die there. She is a younger girl, and one of the rowdiest dogs I've ever met. Fortunately, she and Cal are best buddies, and they tire each other out daily.

Since then, our greyhound foster, Starz Artiste, was adopted by a wonderful family. She is such a lover, and I know they enjoy that about her. The kittens have grown out of the bottle feeding phase, which means we get to sleep again. Penny underwent Immiticide heartworm treatment, and is healing very well. And we got one of our old greyhound fosters back: Perpetual Puff. She was having separation anxiety from being left alone for 9 - 10 hours a day. She's doing better with us, and I'm sure she'll be adopted any time now.

My favorite photo of Artiste, gently resting her head on my shoulder:



The kittens...

Carl (named after Chip's dad, because both have mustaches):



Patty the tabby:



Betty (we thought she was a boy until recently; we had named her Benny):



And Bethany (with Betty and Patty), who is so mellow and laid back that we named her after Bethany Hamilton:



And here's Penny. She's just gorgeous, right? We are fostering her through For the Love of Labs Rescue, and if you or anyone you know is interested in her, we can arrange transport to almost anywhere.



And here's Miss Puff (yes, that is Puff spit on my shirt):





And lunch, of course!



Organic Fuji apple, pita chips, spicy red pepper hummus, pecans, organic dark chocolate chips, organic salted sunflower seeds, banana, and organic quinoa with organic spinach.

Chip's lunch: March 15, 2011

Um, does this look familiar? I realized after I'd packed it that it was basically the same lunch Chip got less than a week before, with slightly different ingredients in the rollups. He didn't notice, so I didn't say anything either. Once again, the rollups were a great way to use a few things up before Chip's departure for Italy.



Organic Fuji apple, banana, organic dark chocolate chips, raw almonds, dried cranberries, homemade vegan carrot spice muffins, and whole wheat rollups with organic avocado, local alfalfa sprouts, Campari tomato, organic red onion, and organic spinach.

Chip's lunch: March 9, 2011

We're back in action! We've been doing a lot of traveling over the past few weeks, and things have been so busy. First, we spent a long weekend in Chicago with my brother, and we finally got to meet his girlfriend of almost a year. We had an amazing time with them, and it was so fun to finally see Chicago. I can't believe I'd never been there! A few days after we got home, Chip headed to Italy for the Milan-San Remo bike race. He ate some amazing Italian food, and saw a lot of beautiful sights. Italy is on my list, and I can't wait to get the opportunity to visit once we're living in Europe!

In Chicago, we went to Friends Sushi, and I ate an actual bento box (teriyaki tofu, tempura vegetables, rice):



And we checked out the Chicago River, dyed green for St. Patty's Day:



I packed this lunch a few days before we left for Chicago. The rollups were a great way to use up a few things before our trip.



Whole wheat rollups with hummus, organic black beans, organic quinoa, local alfalfa sprouts, Campari tomato, organic spinach, and organic Boston lettuce, banana, organic flame raisins, raw almonds, organic dark chocolate chips, organic applesauce, and homemade tomato saffron soup.

Chip's lunch: March 7, 2011

Chip and I were looking through some photos this weekend of his last business trip to Spain. He went out to dinner with some co-workers (including native Spaniards) and had a gigantic paella. The pictures looked so neat, and since I love saffron, I decided I could make paella. Why not, right?

It didn't turn out at all how I expected it to look (bright yellow and fluffy), but it did taste great. The recipe called for short grain white rice, but I decided that short grain brown rice would be OK (I bought sweet brown rice without having any idea what it was). Sweet brown rice is kinda sticky and is what is used for brown rice sushi. Of course, I learned this after I made the purchase. I need a smart phone so I can look these things up when I'm at the store.

So anyway, I used this recipe as a guide, and added and subtracted things based on what was in the fridge. I added mushrooms and corn, and left out peas and artichokes. It smelled awesome, and with the addition of some extra paprika and garlic, plus some chipotle powder, it tasted close to perfect.

In reading about sweet brown rice, I discovered that it is commonly used in rice pudding. I love pudding so much. I wish vegetables tasted like pudding; I would eat a lot more of them. I asked Chip if he likes rice pudding and he made a face. Then he offered that he does like tapioca pudding. I feel like if you're going to dislike a pudding, it should be the one with the texture and appearance of frog eggs, but whatever. So I looked up a recipe for vegan tapioca pudding and whipped it up really quickly. It tastes much better than I expected (though a bit too sweet), and Chip might even like it more than I do!



Homemade paella with organic brown rice, organic corn, organic red bell pepper, organic crimini mushrooms, onion, and organic spinach, homemade vegan tapioca pudding, raw almonds, banana, and an organic Pinova apple.

Chip's lunch: March 3, 2011

This Monday, I saw one of those websites that does a weekly list of 7 recipe ideas; one of the ideas was poblano chicken. Most of the ingredients were not vegetarian, so I started doing some googling. I decided to try to recreate the chipotle cream rotini from Betty's, since it's one of Chip's favorite things. I found this site that told me how to make my own vegan heavy cream, and I kind of just winged the rest. It went something like this...

Sauce ingredients:
1 block of silken tofu, firm or extra firm
4+ cups of vegan milk
1 7-oz. can of chipotle peppers in adobo
2 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons margarine
2 cloves pressed garlic
salt and pepper to taste

In a blender or food processor, puree the peppers in one cup of milk. In a pot over medium heat, melt the margarine; add the flour and cook 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Slowly whisk in the chipotle/milk mixture. While this is warming, puree the remaining milk with the tofu until very smooth. Whisk this into the pot and warm, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I mixed this with whole wheat penne (it was 5 cups dry) and lots of veggies. It was so good! Very creamy, and indistinguishable from a dairy version. Much lower fat too!

Also, today we said goodbye to a foster dog whom we've had for almost three weeks. On a whim, I offered to temporarily foster a blind senior cocker spaniel for a friend's rescue group. I am not a little dog person, and I'd never had a blind dog, and was starting to regret my offer until Fudge arrived. I was instantly smitten, and he was such a happy, wonderful addition to our household for the time he was here. He is such a sweet boy, and he really took everything in stride. Within 48 hours he knew the layout of our house, including the stairs, the couch, and the water bowls. He leaped onto furniture and leaped off, which amazed me, since he had no idea where the floor was. We both agreed that if we weren't planning an international move, we would've kept him (moving our own 4 pets is enough). I cried a lot when I dropped him off for transport today, but I know his forever family will love him so much. Safe travels, sweet Fudge.

Here's Fudge with Cal. He took his cues from Cal, and followed him everywhere.



Here he is today, thinking he was looking right at me:



And lunch:



Salad with organic redleaf lettuce, organic spinach, organic carrot, Campari tomato, and local alfalfa sprouts, organic applesauce, organic flame raisins, banana, and homemade chipotle cream penne with tofu and vegetables (organic corn, organic mushrooms, organic green bell pepper, and red onion).

Chip's lunch: September 16, 2010

This lunch looks a little out of place, huh? After several clean lunches in a row, now we're having frozen burritos?! Yeah. We're having work done on our basement, and at the moment we don't have stairs to get down there. Our pantry (including food and all pots and pans) is located in the stairwell down to the basement, which is currently a big hole. So...lucky us, since yesterday we've been eating nothing but frozen and refrigerated foods that don't require pots and pans. We're hoping to have our stairs back tonight, but it is sometimes fun to take a break from all the cooking.



Amy's organic southwestern burrito, banana, local September Wonder apple from the farmers' market (later I fit the other two slices in the lunchbox near the burrito), locally made navy bean pie, and a salad with organic Boston lettuce, organic spinach, organic carrots, organic white mushroom, organic pine nuts, and Roma tomato from our garden.

Chip's lunch: September 10, 2010

Mmmm...restaurant leftovers! We haven't had those in a really long time! My wonderful friend Lori took me out to lunch at Kogen's yesterday, and I had plenty of sesame tofu left over for Chip to have it in his lunch. And look! No banana! I'm sure they'll be back next week though. This is partly because, well, it's Chip, and bananas are what he eats, as well as the fact that there are no fewer than eleven bananas in our fruit bowl right now.



CSA watermelon, 1/2 sandwich on local organic 10-grain bread with guacamole, organic spinach, Roma tomatoes from our garden, and CSA red pepper, organic dark chocolate, organic Thompson raisins, organic macadamias, organic applesauce, and leftover sesame tofu with broccoli, water chestnuts, and fried rice.

Chip's lunch: September 7, 2010

We're back! I went for a late run last Thursday and promised myself I'd pack lunch Friday morning. It never happened. Chip threw together a few unphotogenic things that morning and was on his way.

We had a nice, relaxing Labor Day weekend (minus a bit of a cold that I had). We spent lots of time together, doing things we enjoy (a few little house projects, some long walks in the cool evenings, a few runs in the glorious afternoon sunshine, and a trip to the Three Creeks Metropark), and I also spent some time cooking. I decided to bite the bullet and buy some saffron on Saturday for $19. We both think saffron is awesome, but the price is hard to stomach. However, I'd been staring at Clean Eating Magazine's September/October issue long enough that all I wanted to eat was their "Penne with Broccoli, Kale, and Pine nuts in Simple Saffron Broth."

This issue gave recipes for five sauces that could be modified to make a bunch of different dishes. We tried the Alfredo sauce already, and we were both dying to try the "simple saffron broth." It's easy: in a medium bowl, whisk together 2 cups vegetable broth, 4 teaspoons arrowroot powder, and 1/2 teaspoon crushed saffron threads; set aside. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add 2 finely chopped shallots (I also added 2 small cloves crushed garlic) and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in broth mixture (I added 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder), increase heat to high, and cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture thickens slightly and comes to a boil. Remove from heat and season with salt. Cover and set aside to steep for at least 10 minutes.

I cooked up a 12-ounce box of organic penne (I meant to buy whole wheat penne, but I was on the phone with my mom in the grocery store, and I was very distracted), and with three minutes left to boil, I threw in 2 cups of organic broccoli florets and 2 cups of organic chopped spinach. Then I drained the pasta, and added the toasted organic pine nuts and the saffron sauce. It was really delicious! We added plenty of sea salt, and I improvised with the garlic and chipotle powder. We both felt it could use a little *something* else, but neither of us could put a finger on quite what. I think I'll try this again, but I'll for sure play around with the seasonings a bit more.



Organic penne with saffron broth, organic broccoli, organic spinach, and organic pine nuts, steamed asparagus with black pepper and sea salt, organic dried cranberries, organic Thompson raisins, raw almonds, organic raw cashews, organic dark chocolate, banana, and a CSA apple.

Chip's lunch: September 1, 2010

I hate being the guy who says obvious and boring things, but I can't believe it's September. Last September here was beautiful: low humidity, cool temperatures, and little rain. This September appears to be opposite, considering today is supposed to be 92* and humid. This weather makes me want fall to get here now, but I know we'll be missing the summer food soon enough.

Tonight's dinner was Southwestern egg rolls, from a recipe recommended by a friend. Back in the day, I worked at the Hard Times Cafe and couldn't get enough of their Santa Fe egg rolls. Chicken, black beans, corn, cheese...yum! I haven't yet found a tasty vegetarian substitute...til now. This recipe was so satisfying! Easy to make, ridiculously tasty, reasonably healthy, and plenty of leftovers. We both enjoyed these for dinner, and are both looking forward to having more for lunch. We will definitely make this again (though we may reduce the salt...it was a bit much).



Southwestern egg rolls with organic black beans, organic spinach, organic corn, and organic cheese, banana, Clif Z Bar (S'mores flavor), local salsa, guacamole, and a CSA apple.

Chip's lunch: August 12, 2010

Our garden gave us a beautiful big zucchini, so I fired up the grill last night for dinner. The zucchini was good...I mean, it tasted like any other zucchini, but it was extra fun because I picked it myself.

The apple in this lunch came from the farmers' market. There's this slightly grumpy older gentleman there who sells the world's best apples. When they're in season, we get Jonagolds, but that's not for another month or so. For now, we're eating "early Jonagolds." They are a little mealier, and yellow instead of red. But the flavor is great, and the apples are the perfect size.



Grilled zucchini from our garden, organic banana, organic Sultana golden raisins, Nature Valley granola bar, local early Jonagold apple, and a salad with organic greenleaf lettuce, organic baby spinach, local organic grape tomatoes, organic mushroom, and grilled Quorn cutlet.

Chip's lunch: August 11, 2010

Today was another ridiculous day with the animals, and I spent a few hours with Jack at the emergency vet. It appears he was stung by something (bee? spider? wasp?) and it caused an allergic reaction. He was covered in hives, his face was all swollen and lumpy, and his eyes were swelling shut. It came on really quickly and got worse and worse. So...to the e-vet we went.




I got back kind of late, and just threw lunch together. Dinner had no leftovers, so I didn't have a good starting off point. It took me a solid half hour to make this lunch; that is far longer than usual, and reminded me why I usually try to have leftovers with our dinner.



Organic steamed cauliflower and broccoli with Smart balance, sea salt, and black pepper, hummus with organic pine nuts and organic spices, Stacy's pita chips, raw almonds, raw organic cashews, Kashi apple cereal bar, organic applesauce, and whole wheat rollups with avocado, organic greenleaf lettuce, organic baby spinach, local organic grape tomatoes from the farmers' market, organic carrot, and Newman's Own salsa.

Chip's lunch: August 10, 2010

Chip enjoyed today's bruschetta and approved the inclusion of more tomato in this lunch. We got some beautiful carrots from our CSA this weekend and I threw some into a salad. I asked Chip how he prefers them: diced (we call it "carrot confetti"), julienned, or sliced (in little round slices). He likes the carrot confetti, "so I don't have to taste their awfulness." Such a grownup about eating his vegetables!



Salad with organic greenleaf lettuce, organic baby spinach, CSA carrot, Roma tomato from our garden, red onion, and organic pine nuts, organic local pepper jack cheese from the farmers' market, Ancient Grains crackers, Kashi granola bar, natural peanut butter and jelly on Ezekiel sprouted grain bread, and an organic Gala apple.

Chip's lunch: August 6, 2010

I am too tired to write much; this has been a really busy day! I got in late this evening after running the Dublin Irish Festival 5K with Lori. And then eating some amazing cherry lambic sorbet from Jeni's.



I threw lunch together in just a few minutes, and now it's time for bed! Oh, and a few people have asked why I don't usually photograph salad dressing. One reason is because it doesn't usually fit into the lunch box. Another reason, as you'll see below, is that it doesn't photograph well. Oil looks all icky in the flash of a camera.



Salad with organic greenleaf lettuce, organic spinach, organic carrot, Roma tomato from our garden, organic red pepper, organic scallions, and organic sesame seeds, little love note, watermelon, organic dried cranberries, organic Sultana golden raisins, organic raw cashews, banana, salad dressing (Newman's Own Sesame Ginger), and Newman's Own cheese pizza.