Chip's lunch: February 15, 2011

Chip really enjoyed his last crackers and cheese lunch. He was able to kind of snack on it all day, and the non-finger foods that were in it didn't actually get eaten because he was too busy to take a few minutes to heat them up and eat them with utensils. That sounds ridiculous when I write it out...but he is a really busy guy! I think he could eat all of this lunch with his hands, except the tofu. Yes, we eat green beans and asparagus spears with our hands...totally normal, right?



Kashi whole grain crackers, local pepper jack cheese, local Colby cheese, banana, dried cherries, organic dark chocolate chips, dried cranberries, tofu scramble, and steamed green beans and asparagus.

Chip's lunch: February 14, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day! I forgot it was VD until I woke up in the morning. When Chip and I started dating, I was working in a restaurant, and Valentine's Day was one of three "all hands on deck" holidays (along with Fathers' Day and Mothers' Day). Being apart, coupled with my disdain for people who make a big deal of Valentine's Day (thus requiring me to work) meant that Valentine's Day just wasn't a big deal, and it never really has been. So, no hearts or flowers here, just a new recipe we tried out.



Tofu scramble with Twin Oaks organic tofu (our co-op just got it in stock!), organic tempeh, organic crimini mushrooms, organic onion, and organic red bell pepper, banana, dried cranberries, 1/2 of a PB&J on organic whole wheat bread with natural peanut butter, and an organic Cameo apple.

Chip's lunch: February 7, 2011

Maple! I had never considered using maple in a marinade until I came across this recipe in a search for a new way to make tempeh. I'm not huge on maple, but I do really love salty + sweet (mmm...kettle corn). I gave it a shot and it was amazing. The brown rice and plain green beans were the perfect complement to the flavorful tempeh. The marinade is really simple to make, but so complex when you taste it: salty, sweet, spicy. Yum!



Grilled organic tempeh with maple soy glaze, organic brown rice, and steamed green beans, banana, organic Sultana golden raisins, and whole wheat rollups with hummus, organic Boston lettuce, Campari tomatoes, and organic yellow bell pepper.

Chip's lunch: February 2, 2011

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.

Chip's lunch: September 14, 2010

Knowing I had some CSA potatoes to use up, as well as that expensive saffron sitting in the spice rack, I decided to invent a recipe for saffron mashed potatoes. Aldo's in Baltimore is one of our favorite restaurants, and their lobster saffron mashed potatoes used to be one of my favorite foods. I tried to replicate that, and it turned out really well. Making the potatoes was the easy part (although I had literally never made mashed potatoes in my life). Trying to figure out a vegetarian protein that would pair well with them was tougher.

I settled on BBQ tempeh (very loosely based on this recipe). I sauteed up a bunch of veggies, then added sliced tempeh, water, OJ, and barbecue sauce. Chip really liked it! Both parts of our dinner were a change for us, and I appreciate that Chip is always up for something different (different as in something we have infrequently, but not different as in pineapple, yogurt, or blueberries...ha!).



Barbecued organic tempeh with CSA white satin carrot, CSA orange bell pepper, CSA chili peppers, onion, and Roma tomatoes from our garden, saffron mashed potatoes with organic soy milk and CSA potatoes, organic dried cranberries, organic Thompson raisins, homemade vegan pumpkin bread, and local green beans from the farmers' market.

My lunch: July 9, 2009

This is another yummy summer lunch. I really loved all the fresh veggies we were getting over the summer. The tempeh was delicious; the sauce was made of Sriracha, water, and some Sugar in the Raw. It was a touch spicy, but then again I love spicy food! As with the barbecued tempeh, I just sauteed the tempeh in some vegan margarine til it was warm and crispy, then I added the sauce and reduced it a little.



Tempeh with Sriracha-based sauce, organic blackberries, cinnamon grahams with peanut butter, hummus, and broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower.

My lunch: July 2, 2009

This was the first lunch I packed myself to take to school and it was exciting! I attempt to make my lunches vegan. I like to eat vegan, but it's hard to do that when I make dinner because Chip isn't vegan. So...my vegan lunches are a little indulgence for me!

The barbecued tempeh is really easy. I sauteed the tempeh (remember...we were living in a temporary rental without a grill or other normal methods of cooking) in a little bit of vegan margarine til it was cooked through and a touch crispy. Then I added a mixture of 1 part barbecue sauce and 1 part water and cooked it til it reduced and thickened. I added a touch of brown sugar (I seem to like brown sugar in everything), and in the end it only took about 10 minutes.



Barbecued tempeh, organic blackberries and organic raspberries, pear slices, barbecue sauce, Craisins, and Thomas whole wheat English muffin with Smart Balance.