Animals, Avocado, and Angelica's

I spent this past weekend at my parents' house. Yes, again. I know, I can't get away from it. I guess it is mostly because Nick isn't home, but he should be back sometime next week. Anyway, my brother and his wife were visiting and even though the rain ruined our hiking plans, we still went out and did something I had been wanting to do for awhile.

Sunday we visited Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary. Long story short, it was amazing. The tour was great, the animals were happy, and surprisingly...

the skies were blue! We met all the animals on the farm (except the cows, they were on the other side of the field being anti-social).

All of the animals were amazing, really. I don't understand how someone could go to a place like this, look in an animal's eyes, and not see their food differently. I was the most surprised by the turkeys! Those strange looking heads of theirs are actually incredibly soft, and they love to be pet. They're so sweet. Everyone we met was really great, from the goats and pigs to the ducks and chickens.

After the sanctuary we went back to town and I had had lunch at the Garden Cafe, a vegan restaurant. I had an excellent Mexican corn souffle.

The next day I went into the city with my mom and brother. We went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Annex, but had to grab something quick to eat first. This was nothing special but these avocado spring rolls totally hit the spot.

The fruit is a mango nectarine, which I thought sounded so cool! It ended up just tasting like a really juicy and delicious nectarine, but I'm not complaining. The Rock and Roll Annex was fantastic. The regular museum was really very cool, but the special John Lennon exhibit made it even better. I've never been to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Ohio, but the way it works here is really cool. You get your own headphones that are attached to this transmitter, and the music changes depending on where you're standing. Really cool.

We also went to Strands, the home of 18 miles of books. It was cool, they had a lot of old books, but I was tired and hungry, so I visited the travel book section and found a place to eat. Now, whenever I go to the city, I have big plans for places to eat, and it almost never works out. This time, when I had no plans, we ended up being just a few blocks from Angelica's Kitchen. The atmosphere was great, casual but intimate enough. It actually reminded me of a place we had breakfast when we were in Kauai, just in the way like you truly felt as though you were in someone's kitchen. I guess that's why it's called Angelica's Kitchen, huh?

My mom and brother both made their own combo bowls. My brother featured tempeh, which I thought was some of the best I've had. My mom's had soba noodles with a yummy sesame soba sauce. I had the three-bean chili, mainly because it came with cornbread, which I had been craving for awhile!

I also had this coconut carob orange cookie, which was good, although I think there was almost too much coconut in it. My brother had a peach cinnamon muffin, which tasted amazing, plus there were huge slices of peaches in it. It was a tad on the dry side though. When I go back there (and I will go back there), I will get dessert again, but I would definitely be going there for the food first. FYI, if you go, they are cash only.

I know I promised that my next post would be a giveaway, but I didn't want to put this one off, since it actually happened this weekend. Tomorrow is giveaway day, and I'm really excited about it!

Fruity Food

Since I've been back at my apartment, I haven't been feeling exactly inspired. More often than not, when I decide to have at it again, after not cooking for awhile, I usually end up with something bland, burnt, or just...bad. Well, today I was quite pleased with myself.

First though, you'll never believe what did inspire this meal. I was at the gym, watching Paula Deen. First, off, its kind of funny to be watching the butter queen at the gym. Second of all, I rarely watch Paula Deen at all. Anyway, Paula and her son made a Zesty Grilled Tilapia with Mango Coconut Rice. I've been trying to use up what I have in the pantry and fridge this week, plus, the tilapia was obviously not vegan, so I made some changes. Yummy changes.

Please excuse the fuzzy photo and bad lighting!

Tropical Rice

1 can light coconut milk

1/2-3/4 cup water

1 cup brown rice

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups pineapple (I used crushed canned pineapple, but you could use fresh, or diced, or anything)

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut (optional)

Boil the rice in the coconut milk, water, and salt. When it is finished add in the pineapple and shredded coconut. Yum! And a little goes a long way with this, even with the light coconut milk, its rich and realllly nice and creamy! Best of all though, it makes a lot, and once its chilled, it makes an awesome rice pudding-like dessert.

Orange Chickpeas

1 tbsp light oil or non-stick spray

1 can drained and rinsed chickpeas

6 tbsp orange juice

1 tsp salt

black pepper to taste

1/2 tsp grated ginger

1 1/2 tsp hot sauce

Mix it all in a big bowl and let it marinate for about 20 minutes. Spray a pan with non-stick spray and set to medium heat. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the chickpeas are cooked through and taste orange-y.

I was really the most excited to make the rice. However, while the rice is awesome, creamy, and delicious, the chickpeas were definitely the star. I was surprised how much they retained the orange and little hint of spiciness from the hot sauce (I used Tabasco Sweet and Spicy that we got on our trip to Louisiana). All around, one really yummy meal.

I feel like I need a personal life update since its been awhile. I don't know if I ever mentioned, but I obviously didn't end up driving cross country with Nick. The reason why is a long story, but he still appreciated everyone's advice!! He had some vegan donuts earlier this week on someone's suggestion. He also drove through Forks, WA the other day. Haha, I guess that tidbit is really only relevant if you have read or watched Twilight.

Hopefully the "inspiration" will keep flowing and I'll be blogging a little bit more! Stay tuned, hopefully tomorrow, I've got a giveaway coming up!

Where in the world...

Where in the world have I been? I actually have a good answer. Last week my family decided to invite me on vacation with them. Since they called on Tuesday night and were leaving early Thursday morning, this didn't leave me a lot of time for anything, let alone blogging. Such is life though, right? We spent a few days in Bar Harbor, Maine, then a few in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and now we're back in Portland, Maine, and should be heading home today. But we're finally in a hotel with free internet that works, and its early and I can't sleep so...hello!

While we were in Bar Harbor, we went whale watching:

We had breakfast at this little place called the 2 Cats Cafe almost every day:

We went for a bike ride/hiked/drove around Acadia National Park:

Even found a little place called CJ's that served some really good vegan ice cream!:

All in all, Bar Harbor ended up being a very veg friendly town. I don't really have any pictures from Halifax, but we did a lot of historical stuff (visited the Citadel, the Maritime museum, saw Harry Potter...what, you don't consider that historical?), and it was also extremely veg friendly. We didn't actually go anywhere that was solely a vegetarian establishment, but most of the places we went to had really good veg options, or were more than willing to make substitutions or some odd sounding concoction for me (one night I just felt like steamed veggies in marinara sauce..."No, no pasta thank you. Yes, I'm sure.")

Just in case you ever find yourself in Bar Harbor, here is my list of places to visit: A&B Naturals, CJ's Big Dipper (the soy ice cream is in the gelato case), Gringo's Mexican Cafe, Siam Orchid Thai, 2 Cats Cafe.

As for Halifax, we weren't there as long, but we had great success at Mexicali Rosa's, Hamachi House (the location on Barrington), Ray's Lebanese Cuisine, and Sugah!. As far as food options go, I wish we could have stayed in Halifax longer, they had a huge variety of different ethnicities that I don't normally see.

It has been kind of a crazy summer, but in a good way! I'll be back home on Monday and will get all caught up on everyone's blogs, I hope you all are enjoying your summers too!!

Toasted Corn and Sweet Red Pepper Rice

I ended up staying at my parents for much longer than anticipated this week.  I left on Monday afternoon, planned to come home Wednesday afternoon.  Well, its Thursday, I'm still here, and we're going to the movies tonight.  So, I don't think I'll be getting back until tomorrow.  Don't worry, I brought Zoe with me, and she is quite happy watching the birds and chipmunks again.

It took awhile, but I realized my mom has the same camera as me, so I can just borrow her camera cord.  Hellooo!  

When I was living at home I usually made dinner once a week.  I am not the type to make the same recipe twice.  There's just so much out there, why keep making the same thing?  My mom, does not agree.  If she ever gets asked, she always wants the same thing, which has come to be known as "that rice stuff I like".  

I figured since it is mom's favorite, and she's been asking me to actually write down some kind of recipe for it, I would make it for her, and share!  I gave it fancier name, but you can still call it "that rice stuff Gina's mom likes" if you want.  

Toasted Corn and Sweet Red Pepper Rice

3 cups of COOKED Brown Rice (about 1.5 cups raw)
10oz box frozen corn (about 2 cups)
2/3 cup salsa
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lime juice
1 large red pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped scallions
1 block extra-firm tofu

Put two pans on to medium heat. Liberally cover both with non-stick cooking spray. 

While the pans heat up, remove the tofu from the water. Slice it as thick or thin as you want (probably into about as many pieces as can fill your pan), and press with a towel on both sides. You don't need to be crazy about removing the water, just dry it a little. Salt and pepper both side and place in one of the pans. Just let it sit in the pan. Don't move it around, don't pick it up. It will form a golden crust on that side. Peek at the corner of one piece until it is somewhat hard and golden brown. Then flip and wait for the other side. When its all done, cut it into cubes. 

The corn goes in the other pan. It'll thaw first, but it needs to be in long enough to toast. You'll want to stir, periodically under it starts get brown flecks and look toasty and caramelized.

You can do the rest before or while everything is cooking. While this stuff is cooking, slice the pepper, chop the scallion and make the dressing. For the dressing, mix the salsa, lime juice, and canola oil. 

When everything is done mix it all together in a big bowl. 

That's it! Its easy, its fast, its healthy and it is soooo good. We usually have it as the main dish with a side of broccoli. It can serve anywhere from 4-6, depends on how hungry you are.

Serves 6

Nutritional Information:  271.5 Calories;  8.2g Total Fat;  0.9g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  40.0g Carbohydrates;  4.8g Fiber;  11.3g Protein 

You could also use garbanzo beans if you are intolerant to soy, or you could just leave the protein out altogether.

We went to the Kutztown Folk Festival yesterday, my mom, brother and I.  Its in the middle of Pennsylvania Dutch country.  

I always think this view looks like that default Windows background

I guess the food is supposed to be good, but its not really our kind of stuff, so I found a place that would make us all happy to stop for lunch.  If you ever find yourself in Kutztown, Betty's is a cool place.  Cute little place, kind of wants to be funky and earthy when it grows up, and the food was great!  Its casual, and cheap, mostly wraps, salads, soups, and you can easily eat for about $5.  Oh, and it caters to both omnivores and vegetarians/vegans.

We saw some cute baby ducks at the fair.  I love birds, but I especially love ducks, and everyone knows that babies get even more love, so I had to take a picture.  

There were really cute baby bunnies too, but my attention was taken away from picture taking then because we were allowed to pet, hehe.  

We stopped at the Clinton Station Diner for dinner.  Its right on the side of the highway and its got a train car attached to it, so we always notice it.  We actually got to eat in the train.  

Me and my brother

Also, my brother recently became a vegetarian, which I believe I have yet to mention on here, so that's pretty awesome!  There was plenty of stuff I could have eaten at this diner, but I thought we were getting fast food for dinner so I had brought my own, and already had eaten it, so I just had some fruit salad.   

Because I am at my parents', I have already seen a bunch of movies.  I don't know why, Nick and I haven't really been at all.  I saw My Sister's Keeper with my mom, and saw Public Enemy with my brother and his friend last night.  My Sister's Keeper was so sad, but really good.  No, I didn't read the book, but apparently some important things (I won't say what, but if you want to know, email me) were very different.  I kind of like it that way because I feel like I can go read the book now if I want.  Public Enemy was good.  The acting was good, it was engaging, but I'm not running around raving about it, its just not my kind of movie.  Tonight we are going to see Away We Go, which I am really excited for!  

As much as I like being home, I definitely woke up this morning wanting my own bed (which is weird because this bed was "my bed" for two years).  I think its my pillow that I miss.  Anyway, we should be back home on Friday!  

A New (Raw) Day

The first time I ever did a "raw day" I was nervous about exercising.  Worried that I wouldn't be eating enough, not getting enough calories, would be tired, sluggish, etc.  Yesterday, after having some dates, I went out and ran (and walked) a total of 5 miles, and I'm still feeling pretty peachy.  

The menu included a lot of nut and seed soaking, prep time, and a very messy kitchen, but it was well worth it.  

Breakfast was a Vega Smoothie.  The very lovely people at Vega sent me a nice sized bag of Vega Whole Food Smoothie Infusion last week.  While the hemp in Vega is raw, the other proteins aren't (like the pea protein).  I figured with so much good stuff in it, was still okay with me to start a raw day.  

But, I was skeptical.  Oh SO skeptical.  I have regular Vega and I'm not a fan of it.  I bought it because it has so much great healthy stuff in it, but I just can't have it every day, for various reasons.  I decided I'd make their Blueberry Smoothie suggestion on the back of the package, since I had fresh blueberries from the farmer's market yesterday.  My first impression?  Ew.  The powder is a gross green color...but that's because its filled with greens (spirulina, spinach, broccoli, etc)!  So I sucked it up and made the smoothie.  And...it was really good!!  It was still a gross greenish brown color (hence the lack of picture...you didn't want to see it), but that's just what happens when you add greens to a smoothie.  The Vega Smoothie Infusion is about 120 calories a serving and has 14 grams of protein.  So the verdict is, if you're looking for a very healthy, very easy way to start (or end, or continue) you day, there is no denying that this stuff is really good for you, and pretty tasty to boot!

I can't possibly say enough about how delicious my lunch was, so I will just give you a picture which does not do it justice.  

This is the Baked Macaroni and Cheese from Everyday Raw, with Buckwheat Cheezies (recipe follows).  This was SO good.  What really made it just the best was that it was dehydrated for awhile, so the squash softened a little bit.  Really, this is fantastic, if you have the book, you must try it.  

The Buckwheat Cheezies are based on a recipe that was in Vegetarian Times a few months ago, but I made it raw-ish, so I will share.    

1/2 cup Raw Buckwheat Groats

1/4 cup plus 1-2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast (not raw)

2 tbsp Olive Oil

3 garlic cloves

5-ish Basil Leavs (depends on how much you like basil)

2 tsp salt

1.  Soak buckwheat groats overnight.  Give them some space because they just about double in size.

2.  Dehydrate the groats for about 3 hours at 104 degrees.

3.  Blend together the oil, garlic, salt, and basil until it makes a thick paste.

4.  When the groats are dehydrated, add them to a bowl with the paste and mush everything together until all the groats are more or less coated with something (it may not be even).  

5.  Dehydrate for another 30-60 minutes.

These are so yummy!  I wouldn't eat them by themselves, the raw garlic is fairly strong, but they were absolutely perfect over the baked mac and cheese.  Also, for those of you without a dehydrator, you can do this in a 300 degree oven too, which is what the original recipe calls for.  If you want to roll that way, you don't need to pre-dehydrate them, and you should only keep them in for 30 minutes.  Also, if you're not keeping it raw, you could cook the garlic with the oil.  

Makes 8 2-Tbsp Servings

Nutritional Information:  90.5 Calories;  4.1g Total Fat;  0.6g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  10.7g Carbohydrates;  2.6g Fiber;  4.6g Protein.  And 181% of the RDA for Vitamin B12!

One of the things I was really itching to make with the dehydrator was Ani's Black Sesame Sunflower Bread.  

I had it as a raw sandwich for dinner along with her Sun-Dried Tomato Cheeze, topped with some avocado and tomato, along with some fresh farmer's market green beans.  This Cheeze was okay.  The Black Pepper Cheeze was way better.    

The bread was somewhat of a disaster, although it worked out in the end!  Because my kitchen is still in pieces all over the country, I don't have things like sieves, so it was hard to get all the water out of the teeny flaxseeds and sesame seeds.  I think that made it too watery, and it made a bit of a mess.  Again though, it worked out.  Next time I make it I think I'll take her advice to make a few batches of it.  I calculated the nutritional information for it and was really surprised.  I'm not a big "real" bread person, so I'd choose this any day.  

Makes 9 Slices

Nutrition Information:  167.6 Calories;  13.0g Total Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  9.6g Carbohydrates;  7.0g Fiber;  6.6g Protein

Dessert, of course, was the impetus for having a raw day at all.  I've had my eye on the Key Lime Kream Bars in Ani's Raw Food Desserts since the moment I opened the book.  

I really didn't need a "raw day" as an excuse to make them, since they came together in all of 5 minutes (plus freezing time).  They are yummy!  I made a dessert or two in Ani's first book and I thought that they were incredibly salty, but it seems like she's toned it down for this book, and everything I've tried so far (like the Strawberry Macaroons) has been fantastic! 

I really love having an (almost) entirely raw day.  Because I have far too much time on my hands now, I calculated the nutritional information for everything (email me if you want any of it), and it came to just about 2000 calories (including an orange I had for a snack), which is perfect for me.  What is really more important to me though, is that it all came from good, whole food.  Nothing is better than that, right?  

  

Zero Calorie Sparkling Iced Green Tea

Everywhere I go now is so close that I rarely turn on the radio.  But it seems like every time I do I hear an ad for a new Lipton's product, Sparkling Green Tea.  Sounds yummy.  Especially now that it is really getting warmer here.  Of course I knew without even looking that one of the first ingredients would be sugar.  They proved me wrong though, its actually high fructose corn syrup.  My bad.  

So I set out to create my own.  Should be easy enough, right?  Well it is!  

2 green tea bags

1/2 cup water 

3/4-1 cup sparkling water

stevia to taste (liquid or powder, your preference)

1.  Heat the water until it just begins to bubble, not boil  Green tea shouldn't be steeped in water that is too hot or it cooks the leaves.  If it does start to boil, just let it cool a little before you add the tea bags.  

2.  Let both of the tea bags steep for a few minutes.  The taste will be rather strong, and the color will be fairly dark because it is pretty concentrated.  *Its important that you do this first for two reasons.  First, it will dissolve easier while the tea is warm.  Second, if you add the stevia after the sparkling water is added, it loses some of its fizz.*    

3.  Allow the tea to cool in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.  

4.  When chilled remove from fridge and add sparkling water (which should also be chilled, just in case that isn't obvious).

6.  Drink!  Enjoy!  Be refreshed!  

Serves 1-4.  Depends on how much tea you want (and you can have as much as you want because it has no calories!)  I used some tea I got as a favor at the wedding we went to a few weeks ago, from our friends who we met when we were in Hawaii.  

You can obviously do this with any kind of tea:  green, black, white, etc.  Also, if you don't like stevia you can use sugar or agave and it'll still be lower in calories than the Lipton stuff.  If you are nervous about trying stevia, I say now is the time to try it!  I've been using it for quite awhile, in liquid and powder form, and I personally prefer the powder (although they both have their uses).  For stevia, I like the NuNaturals brand.  

This has maltodextrin added which I think is what makes it so NOT bitter, and it also mixes really well.  They make a zero-carb version also, which has some erythritol added.  I've used erythritol before, and I never really gave a review about it.  I don't like it.  It is a sugar alcohol and it just has a grainy taste and doesn't dissolve well.  They both are calorie free, so I'm sticking with this one.  

My only real personal update is that I really have no update.  Nothing worth sharing has been coming out of my kitchen, whether prepared by me or from a recipe.  Sadly most things have flopped, or they were just boring everyday things.  My mom has requested that I write down a recipe for one of my rice recipes that she loves, so that is coming, as well as some scones I plan on making tonight.  Oh, and tomorrow is going to be a raw day, so come back for that!  

As far as running is going, its going.  I'm much slower than I used to be which is extremely frustrating, but I'm still getting up and going which is what is most important right now.  I'm going out again with my new running buddy tomorrow (who is a vegetarian!) for a long run (which right now is only 5 miles, haha).  I also had lunch with another vegan yesterday (vegan friends, yay!), so I'm not just sitting at home with Zoe.  

So, that is why its been awhile, but I have much planned, so be sure to come back this week!      

Sweet Harvest Muffins

A lot of things have changed since I started this blog.  My husband came back from Iraq, I moved, I completed my student teaching, I graduated.  All good stuff.  One not so good thing though, is that there is more of me.  

A little background, I've lost some weight in the past.  I grew up eating a pretty normal diet, but my mom was always good about getting low fat mayo, turkey burgers, diet soda, low fat cream cheese, etc.  Then I went to college and there was full fat butter, whole milk whipped cream, and those disgusting Minute Steak cheesesteaks that were full of fat but tasted delicious.  Oh yeah, and there was beer.  Obviously I wasn't vegan or vegetarian before college, or during college, but the quality of my diet was severely different and as such...I gained weight.  

By the end of my junior year I was about 30 pounds overweight.  I started watching what I ate (and drank), I started exercising, and I eventually lost the full 30 pounds, although I don't think the weight I was at was ever sustainable for me.  I didn't become vegetarian until after I lost the weight, and I didn't become vegan until after my weight sort of evened out. 

I'm very frustrated because while I know exactly how and why the weight has come back on (stress!!!), I'm disappointed with myself for letting it happen.  But what else can I do but fix it, right?  I signed up for a 5K, I found a running buddy (we're going tomorrow, we'll see how that goes), I have a training plan, and a nutrition plan.  I don't have a scale, so I don't necessarily have a number that I am looking for, but it'd be nice if my jeans would fit again without having to do the "stretch out the jeans" dance.

To start out on the right foot, I made some muffins last night.  I know, that doesn't *sound* like it is on the right foot, but if they're the Sweet Harvest muffins from Sweet Freedom, they can be.  You've had zucchini bread, and you've probably tried carrot cake or muffin.  But this muffins packs in three different vegetables as well as something a little fruity.  Plus there's a little chocolately hint of goodness.  I did halve the number of chocolate chips.    

Makes 12 Muffins

Nutrition Information:  214.4 Calories;  8.0g Total Fat;  0.9g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  36.7g Carbohydrates;  4.5g Fiber;  4.6g Protein

These are so nice and moist.  One of my favorite things about this book (of which you can buy the hard copy or the e-book, like I did), is her reminder that you can freeze everything!  I get tempted when yummy baked goodness is just lying around.  

For lunch I had some roasted beets, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted garlic, and scallions with a sweet mustard dressing.  Simply it was about 2tbsp Vegenaise, 2 tsp brown mustard, 1 packet stevia, and a few tsp of apple cider vinegar.  

There was tofu too, but not pictured

Hopefully this is a new leaf turning over.  Not just getting in better shape but generally having some stability, and hopefully a better 5K time.