So hubby and I survived our fast! We started eating turkey and other yummy things about two weeks ago, Super Bowl Sunday to be exact. Boy was it delicious to be able to eat like normal people again!!!
There are several things I noticed while on the fast and after the fast.
::While on the fast::
-I lost about 10 lbs. Yay!!!
-My face cleared up
-My morning breath was very mild (LOL)
-I slept so good!
-My digestion improved
-I didn't crave sweets
I'm sure there's more stuff I just can't remember now but anyway. Now that I've been eating more carbs and animal products my digestion has slowed down! My face has developed a few breakouts, etc. I haven't gained weight, don't intend to! I still have not eaten red meat, I used to be a lover of red meats but as I have educated myself in healthy eating my taste for it has diminished. I have not craved it and I'm afraid my body will have a bad reaction to it.
Comparing the before and after makes me want to start up again! But I love food too much and can't restrict too much off my diet! I eat pretty healthy as it is but I plan on staying away from certain things.
One of my favorite dinners I made while on the fast/diet was stir fry. I always use what I have on hand so it's a versatile recipe.
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Vegetarian Stir Fry
1 package of extra firm tofu*
2 bell peppers cleaned (veins and seeds) and sliced
2 sliced onions
5 cloves of garlic, finely minced
Soy Sauce, low sodium
1 head of broccoli, trimmed
Salt and pepper to taste
Red pepper flakes optional
Start off by draining the tofu, if you get the extra firm it should have the consistency of a block of cheese, such as cheddar. Cut tofu in cubes and set aside.
On a large skillet/wok heat up 1/2 Tbsp of olive oil. Add the onions and cook until translucent, add peppers and cook for about 5-8 minutes, take out of skillet and set aside. Skillet back on stove at med heat, add 1/2 Tbsp olive oil, once hot add garlic and spread through the skillet, cook for 1 min. Add tofu, season with pepper and some red pepper flakes for some heat. Add about 2 Tbsp of soy sauce, or more. Add the rest of the veggies including broccoli, mix it all together and cook until the broccoli florets turn a bright green. This should only take about 3 minutes, no more than 5.
Serve hot of brown rice or farro.
DELICIOUS!!!!
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Black Bean Burgers
So while on this fast my husband has obviously been craving meat! Funny because we don't consume a lot of red meat, we are a poultry and fish kind of family. Anyway to try to satisfy his craving I whipped up some bean burgers last night after zumba! I made somewhat-healthy "fries" to go with them and a simple salad on the side. It was just what we needed! They turned out so good!
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Black Bean Burgers
3 cups cooked black beans (drained)
1 onion chopped
1 green bell pepper seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
1 tsp cumin (or more to taste)
1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
I had some left over steel cut oats that needed using so I added those in my mix as well
First mash up your beans, add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
Heat up a skillet with 1/2 T olive oil, make your burgers and cook for about 5 min on each side
Serve along side a salad and fries. Buns are optional! =)
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Baked Spicy Fries
8-10 small red potatoes washed and quartered
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Spread your potatoes on a baking pan with skin side down. Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients over all the potatoes. At this point you can drizzle some olive oil if you wish. Rub all the potatoes to ensure the spices were sprinkled evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 min or until you prick with a knife or fork and there's no resistance.
These potatoes were so good! They even came out a bit crunchy on the outside despite the lack of oil on them.
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Happy Cooking!
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Black Bean Burgers
3 cups cooked black beans (drained)
1 onion chopped
1 green bell pepper seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
1 tsp cumin (or more to taste)
1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
I had some left over steel cut oats that needed using so I added those in my mix as well
First mash up your beans, add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
Heat up a skillet with 1/2 T olive oil, make your burgers and cook for about 5 min on each side
Serve along side a salad and fries. Buns are optional! =)
-----------------------
Baked Spicy Fries
8-10 small red potatoes washed and quartered
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Spread your potatoes on a baking pan with skin side down. Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients over all the potatoes. At this point you can drizzle some olive oil if you wish. Rub all the potatoes to ensure the spices were sprinkled evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 min or until you prick with a knife or fork and there's no resistance.
These potatoes were so good! They even came out a bit crunchy on the outside despite the lack of oil on them.
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Happy Cooking!
Saturday, January 19, 2013
All Vegan Lentils
When I married my husband, as most new brides do, I imagined he was perfect in every way! To my horror he did not share my love for vegetables, most fruits, and don't even mention lentils!
I made it my mission to change his mind about all of the above. After spending more and more time with my in-laws and trying most of his mother's cooking and his grandma's I understood why he hated vegetables! Veggies are precious gems that need tender love and care. Cook them a bit too long and they could be ruined! steam them for hours and you'll end up with limp asparagus that is not only disgusting to look at, but is bland and gross. Yup that's what my poor baby ate throughout his youth!
Soon enough I introduced my flavorful veggies, cooked to perfection, not too little not too much, and it was a success! Along the way my mil has picked up a number of tricks from my style of cooking and can now cook a decent meal where I don't have to lie and say "it's delicious mom!"
For dinner tonight I wanted something easy that I didn't need to put too much thought into making. It had to pretty much cook all on its own and be ready by the time my husband left for work this morning. I decided on lentil soup. Lentils how I love thee! It's the perfect bean? Are they beans? Whatever they are, I love them! They are packed with protein, folic acid, vitamin B and fiber! They have so much flavor and are very versatile!
My favorite way to cook them is in a soup, I usually add anything on hand, that includes bacon most of time. My essential aromatics for 99% of my dishes are garlic and onion. In my opinion these two must be included in every meal, otherwise everything lacks flavor.
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All Vegan Lentils
3 cups dry lentils
8-9 cups of water
8 cloves of garlic roughly chopped
1 whole onion roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste I used about 1 Tbsp of salt and just a sprinkle of pepper
Add all the ingredients to a crockpot and cook on low for about 8 hours.
Top them with some ripe cherry tomatoes, some cucumber and avocado. YUM!
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I would usually cook this on the stovetop and taking a different route. First I sauté the onions in a bit of olive oil for about 5 min, stirring constantly. Next I add the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 min. After cooking onions and garlic I add a couple of ripe and roughly chopped roma tomatoes. Next I add the lentils and mix it well and cook for about 5 mins, stirring constantly. Then I add the water and bring to a boil before lowering heat to a simmer covering and cooking for about 2-3 hrs or until the lentils are tender and the water is like a thick sauce.
I put these in my crockpot last night and let them cook all night long. They were ready by the morning and I was able to pack my hubby his lunch and dinner before leaving for work.
Last night I omitted the tomatoes because I didn't have any and didn't feel like going to the store =D
Happy cooking!
Friday, January 18, 2013
New Page
First post! I've tried this blogging thing a number of times, hopefully this time I'll stick to it. I want this blog to be a place where I can share a bit of everything, but mostly some of my own recipes which are basically my mom's recipes with a twist, and some of my own crazy yet yummy creations.
So hubby and I have been on a bit of a fast for about a week now. We are doing the Daniel fast, where you basically have all that is good for you! Fruits and veggies, nuts, legumes and whole grains.
It sure has been a bit difficult getting my husband to eat his veggies lol. I guess pretty much most of America is so used to sugars, artificial sweeteners, over processed food and so much more that is causing more diabetes, obesity, heart disease and a super long list of other complications that could very easily be avoided if eating the right foods and exercising.
I'm not saying we are the perfect example of health, and we sure struggle with exercising but we are striving to eat more clean foods, and overall trying to change lots of everyday things and make them safer for our bodies. For example, the soap we put on our bodies. Most soaps out there are so full of harsh chemicals and detergents that not only dry up your skin but overtime, can cause bigger health issues. We chose to switch to an organic castile soap, meaning it's only made with the best stuff for you i.e. coconut oil! and some other organic oils. That stuff is great! our skin is so smooth, not dry at all! my husband loves it, and it's great for your hair, face and body! Anyway, rant over. Since being on the fast mentioned above, I have had to really put a lot of thought on what to cook, and cook it in a way my husband will eat it ((insert picky eater, not too fond of veggies!)) Today's recipe is what we had for dinner!
----Hummus and Quinoa Patties---
Approximate measurements
2 1/2 cups cooked chick peas
1 lemon - juiced (you can add more, up to your liking)
2 cups baby spinach
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
salt and pepper to taste
In a food processor pulse one third of chick peas and half lemon juice until it's mostly smooth, some texture is fine. (I had to do this in batches because my food processor is small) Put in a medium bowl. Next batch, add rest of peas to food processor with the rest of the ingredients except the quinoa. Mix all together adding the quinoa, this is the step where you have to judge how much or little quinoa your mix needs, you don't want it super gooey with too much liquid but you don't want it too dry either. Once you find right consistency make small patties and cook on a skillet with just enough oil to prevent them from sticking, I used 1/2 tbsp, cook for about 3-5 minutes on each side, depending on thickness of patties. Since everything is cooked you really just need to heat it up.
Serve with avocado on top and a salad to accompany them and you have the perfect semi fancy meal!
--------------
My husband loved these babies and went back for seconds!
Happy cooking!
So hubby and I have been on a bit of a fast for about a week now. We are doing the Daniel fast, where you basically have all that is good for you! Fruits and veggies, nuts, legumes and whole grains.
It sure has been a bit difficult getting my husband to eat his veggies lol. I guess pretty much most of America is so used to sugars, artificial sweeteners, over processed food and so much more that is causing more diabetes, obesity, heart disease and a super long list of other complications that could very easily be avoided if eating the right foods and exercising.
I'm not saying we are the perfect example of health, and we sure struggle with exercising but we are striving to eat more clean foods, and overall trying to change lots of everyday things and make them safer for our bodies. For example, the soap we put on our bodies. Most soaps out there are so full of harsh chemicals and detergents that not only dry up your skin but overtime, can cause bigger health issues. We chose to switch to an organic castile soap, meaning it's only made with the best stuff for you i.e. coconut oil! and some other organic oils. That stuff is great! our skin is so smooth, not dry at all! my husband loves it, and it's great for your hair, face and body! Anyway, rant over. Since being on the fast mentioned above, I have had to really put a lot of thought on what to cook, and cook it in a way my husband will eat it ((insert picky eater, not too fond of veggies!)) Today's recipe is what we had for dinner!
----Hummus and Quinoa Patties---
Approximate measurements
2 1/2 cups cooked chick peas
1 lemon - juiced (you can add more, up to your liking)
2 cups baby spinach
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
salt and pepper to taste
In a food processor pulse one third of chick peas and half lemon juice until it's mostly smooth, some texture is fine. (I had to do this in batches because my food processor is small) Put in a medium bowl. Next batch, add rest of peas to food processor with the rest of the ingredients except the quinoa. Mix all together adding the quinoa, this is the step where you have to judge how much or little quinoa your mix needs, you don't want it super gooey with too much liquid but you don't want it too dry either. Once you find right consistency make small patties and cook on a skillet with just enough oil to prevent them from sticking, I used 1/2 tbsp, cook for about 3-5 minutes on each side, depending on thickness of patties. Since everything is cooked you really just need to heat it up.
Serve with avocado on top and a salad to accompany them and you have the perfect semi fancy meal!
--------------
My husband loved these babies and went back for seconds!
Happy cooking!
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