Green Smoothie Cleanse/Challenge

Morning Smoothie (#1 of day #1)

Strawberries
Banana
Collard green leaf
Leaf of lettuce
Flax seed
Flax seed oil
Zucchini
Water

How ironic....

That my last post was about bacon and this post is about how I am starting a 5 day vegan challenge tomorrow....well, it's not as big of a leap as it sounds like. After buying the 1/4 pig last year and 1/2 lamb last year I began reading a lot about both the health and environmental impacts of meat. We were not big meat eaters before and bough the mass quantity because I had begun buying only local, organically fed animals and price-wise this was A LOT better deal. But....we still haven't been able to go through that much meat, have been giving it away lately and serving it to others : ) It's all great quality meat, but when your diet has shifted to a mostly plant-based one, it's hard to go through pounds and pounds of meat and I needed to clear out freezer space for my peppers, berries, tomatoes, etc. that we got this summer.

So, long story condensed a bit....I found this website of a healthy hip young Candanian nutritionalist who subscribes to a mostly vegan gluten free eating lifestyle. I've been following her blog for a bit and was intrigued when she announced a 5 day vegan challenge complete with a tutorial, menu planning, etc. It's not so far out my comfort zone that I am worried, but it is requiring a lot of meal prep today....

So far I have made a batch of apple-cinnamon muffins, quinoa tabouli, steamed cauliflower, carrot-ginger soup --- all for tomorrow -- and still have to make some sweet potato kasha patties. Gearing up for tomorrow I tried to be a wee bit more vegan about my choices today and had a cheese -free pizza on a sprouted grain tortilla for lunch (and will likely have one for dinner as well since the kiddos are having homemade cheese pizzas) and even put soy milk in my 2nd cup of coffee instead of creamer. I'll be reporting back about my progress and the food (if there are any muffins left for my breakfast. - my 5 year old has already eaten 4 of them!)

If you want to check out more about the 5 day vegan challenge, here it is:

http://meghantelpnerblog.com/2009/09/01/5-days-vegan-join-the-health-challenge/

Baking Bacon

Just a quick note....baking bacon is FAR easier and less messy than pan frying. It usually takes about 20 minutes (with a flip in the middle) at 375 degrees. I do it on a tinfoil lined baking sheet to make clean up super easy....I'm baking some bacon right now to have on sandwiches tomorrow. And, yes, the house smells like breakfast!

Today, whatever day today is....

I think it's March 2nd (at least that's waht my 5 year old tells me, I'll trust her!) I suck at doing this blog daily (especially since I recently discovered Facebook!) But here's what he had for dinner tonight:



Pan-fried Marinated Tofu Steaks from Feeding the Whole Family (Cynthia Lair)
Asian-style Cabbage Salad with fruits and nuts
Kale (wilted in the cast iron skillet)

It got an A++ from my husband, who said that a few years ago you couldn't have convinced him that a dinner of tofu and cabbage would have been at all appetizing, yet tonight he found it delicious. We were actually fighting over the leftovers (I won!)

February 20th - Day 20

Tacos for dinner tonight. Or nachos. Or burritos. Or whatever else one can come up with this pile of stuff I have set out on the counter:

Homemade guacamole (avocado, red onion, roma tomato...all from OTY bin)
Remainder of Nancy's sour cream
Home preserved salsa from this summer
Corn tortillas
Kettle chips blue corn chips
Shredded lettuce (OTY)
Black Beans (rancho gordo midnight black)
Chicken (leftover from freezer)
Shredded Tillamook Cheddar
Sauteed Red and Yellow Bell Peppers (from freezer) and Red Onion (OTY)

Seems like a good "get-rid-of-stuff" meal.....tomorrow night I am planning on a breakfast scramble with fried potatoes. Next week will be a challege as DH will be out of town, so the girls and I will be on our own....in other words, I can't plan anything with leftovers because no one will eat them!

February 19th.....

So, I missed a few (who's counting?) days here.....we were all sick with this cold thing from hell. Then family was in town. Then life has just been crazy. There, we're all caught up now.

In a recap, I did cook up a ham from the hog we bought while the fam was here. Everyone agreed it was quite tasty and didn't need any accompaniment. I served it with a bunch of oven roasted root veggies, some sauteed greens and a salad. And there was even a bit leftover to make a ham and bean soup.

Last night I made Mark Bittman's easy salmon burgers (basically a paste of raw salmon, diced shallots, dijon mustard, capers, fresh breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, etc) and then they were pan fried. Mmmm......

The night before was Portabello Burgers (we commented that this is more "burger" than we typically eat in months!) with home oven fries with a whole buncha toppings....blue cheese, avocado, lettuce, onion, tomato, etc.

Tonight's agenda is a bean soup from the freezer (from ye ole soup exchange) and some baked russet potatoes. An easy dinner since I am baking 2 loaves of whole wheat bread and cooking up some black beans for the kids right now too....

February 11th - DAY ELEVEN

Tonight's dinner was scheduled to be a shrimp and feta bake, but I didn't feel like making it. So I decided to go the easy route and use a bag of soup from the soup exchange I hosted last month (Split Pea and Ham) and some frozen cornbread wedges. However, late this afternoon I decided to change it up again and save the soup and cornbread for tomorrow when I will be running from activity to event all day long and have absolutely NO time to make any dinner. So.....tonight we are having salmon and avocado spring/summer rolls (the kind in rice paper, not the fried ones) with an Asian cabbage slaw.

To make dinner I made some rice noodles and marinaded them in a soy sauce/sesame oil/garlic/ginger mixture in the fridge. (I think it helps to season the noodles a bit.) I also put some precooked chunked salmon marinating in a similiar mixture.
When I go to assemble them I will soak the rice papers and then put a small piece of lettuce in the center of the wrap, top with a bit of the noodles, salmon and a slice of avocado. If I have them I also sometimes use sprouts, shredded carrots, red bell pepper slices, etc. Also I often sub shrimp for the salmon or strips of fried tofu - depending on what I have on hand.

I'll serve them with this homemade peanut dipping sauce (although you could easily sub almond butter for the peanut butter in this recipe I use.....)

Satay Dip (adapted from Barefoot contessa):
1 tablespoon good olive oil

1 tablespoon dark sesame oil

2/3 cup small-diced onion (1 small onion)

1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)

1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger root

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2-3 tablespoons good red wine vinegar

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup ketchup

1-2 tab water

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice


Cook the olive oil, sesame oil, red onion, garlic, ginger root, and red pepper flakes in a small, heavy-bottomed pot on medium heat until the onion is transparent, 10 to 15 minutes. Whisk in the vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, peanut butter, ketchup, water, and lime juice; cook for 1 more minute.


Yield: 1 1/2 cups

(Leftovers freeze well too)