Vegan Option!

I'd love to say I came up with this recipe purely to go vegan and improve my life and animal's lives all over the world, however.... I accidentally threw this together out of leftover abundance and laziness.  I really need meat.  There's a lot of argument over that, but I do have a metabolic disorder that complicates my system and proteins simply help the absorption of nutrients and slow the effect of sugar way better than veggies or complex carbs.  So, to have a vegan recipe in my house, is basically unheard of.

However, last night we had tacos: beef, black beans, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, hot sauce, sour cream, chives.  It was delicious.  When we finished dinner, I found I had a LOT of black beans left.  Normally, the kids will have these for lunch, heating them up with some cheese and sometimes dipping corn chips.  Today, I went to the freezer to see what meat to thaw, when I realized, it's going to take hours to thaw the chicken or beef or whatever, but there were black beans.  I was thinking a chicken quinoa soup, as I've been meaning to get back to soups and hopefully help heal my body a little (recently realized there's some struggles with solid foods...? what is this, regression?)  The thing is, I didn't want to wait for the chicken to thaw.  I really have been craving some veggies.  So, when I saw the massive bag of quinoa in the freezer (I'll explain,) then I was very excited.   I grabbed some open bags of frozen vegetables that looked as if they were going to get frost bite faster than they were going to be eaten and I set up to throw together an amazing meal.

*Note:  I keep oats, flours - garbanzo, coconut, etc, quinoa, and other such dry goods in the freezer due to a problem a few years ago.   I found an infestation of moths in one of my cans of almonds.  I cleaned those out and the whole cabinet and later found them in a sealed box of flour (which I had long since stopped using.)  One by one, the dry goods in my pantry became contaminated with these tiny bugs that would just not stop.  I cleaned out everything.  Any dry good that came into my house, went into the deep freeze after that.  It just must be that way for now, until I can trust the vermin with my food.   No, I'm not talking about the children....

So, today's recipe is 100% vegan (with the option of adding meat if you need/want to.)  It's also extremely nutritious, protein packed, and delicious!

Hot Veggie Quinoa

2 cups uncooked (but washed quinoa - any type)
2 tBsp vegetable soup base  (non vegan can use chicken soup base if you like)
1/2 small onion chopped (or 4-5 green onions chopped)
2 cloves garlic chopped
1 tBsp coconut oil   (non vegan can use butter if you like)
1 can or 10 oz black beans, rinsed and drained
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables, your choice - I used a couple 1/2 full bags of edamame, mixed and green beans

OPTIONAL:
1/2 cup vegan shredded white "cheese"  for topping (non vegan - shredded parmesan)
2 chopped chicken breasts/ meat if wanting to add meat

The usual ratio of quinoa to water is 1:2.  If you have one cup of quinoa, you need 2 cups of water.  I used 2 cups of quinoa and 4.5 cups of water, maybe even a splash or two more.  I used a little extra water just to give it a smoother texture when I added the vegetables.  Heat large pot over medium heat with coconut oil, garlic and onion in it.  Cook until light brown about 5 minutes.  Add 2.5 cups water and add soup base mixing well until everything is swirled together in the water.  Bring the water to a light boil and add your quinoa.  Turn down the heat and simmer about 15 minutes or until the quinoa crack open and get al dente.  Add in the frozen veggies and black beans (and meat if you choose to have meat with this) and stir over low/med heat until hot all the way through.

Salt and pepper to taste and top with vegan cheese (or parm or nothing at all!) and ENJOY!!  This is very simple, quick, gluten free, appropriate for vegan, vegetarian or those avoiding meats and is still very delicious and healthy with a warm, comfort food appeal.

This recipe will easily feed 6-8, however, no guarantee there will be enough left for seconds or leftovers!

Perfection! Or lack thereof....

I follow a lot of blogs, and a lot of them are food blogs.  Some are just funny to be funny, others random things.  I like gamer stuff, techie, humor.  Mostly humor.  I can have a very dry sense of humor sometimes or just goofy but no matter what I like to read what other people have to say.  With the food blogs, I love to see the ideas people come up with and before you know it, I'm whipping something up in my kitchen and thinking, "OOOH, this is going on my blog when I'm done!"

Well, sometimes, no... many times, I have some delusions of grandeur.  I know I do well around the kitchen (no "America's Next Top Chef") but definitely can shake up some pots.  However, after trying some new recipes from some of these websites, I get a little discouraged.  My shots aren't very clear or bright, my food didn't turn out looking as delicious, or didn't turn out at all.  And these days have a bit of a down effect on me.  I look around, think, maybe I missed my calling with eating and talking....


HAH!  Yeah right!   Eventually I snap out of it.  I love food.  Some days are better than others but nobody's perfect.  That's what I'm getting at today.  You can try some crazy recipes and if it's not as good as it looks on the other website, who cares!?  It's time and effort you did!  That's what counts.  We all have our talents, mine is goofing off in the kitchen until I find something that tastes delicious!  Even if that means ruining every other recipe I find, first.

Today's fun recipe is actually pretty simple.  I'm going to give my modifications but the original recipe is just absolutely delectable!   Forgive the not so great (imperfect!) pictures as I took them with my new Nexus 4 and since my Galaxy died (thanks a lot Samsung....) I had to get something else, unfortunately, this camera isn't quite as good, but it's not bad either.  I need to start saving for an SLR!

This recipe belongs to "Smitten Kitchen."   I have modified it, but of course, her recipe is fine as written.

http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2012/10/spaghetti-with-broccoli-cream-pesto/


Spinach Cream Pesto Linguine

4 Servings of  cooked gluten free linguine (al dente)
1/2 lb of washed/dried spinach (you can do this in a salad spinner)
1 tBsp butter
1/4 tsp chicken stock soup base (vegetarian - use veggie soup stock!)
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 tBsp heavy cream
fresh ground black pepper or pinch of red pepper flakes.
1/2 cup shred parmesan for serving
salt and pepper to taste

In large skillet, melt butter over medium heat and cook onions and garlic thoroughly about 8 minutes.  Add in fresh spinach, and cook quickly about 3 minutes until wilted and dark green.  Careful not to overcook.  Pour the cream over the mixture, add soup base and red pepper flakes and stir about 30 seconds more.  Transfer everything from the skillet into a food processor and pulse until you have a creamy sauce.

Place pasta into a pot and pour the green sauce to cover, mixing well.  Serve hot, sprinkled with parm.

EASY!  You can do it!

(See?  In order to show you perfection is not the goal, I found too late, that I had no linguine or spaghetti, or broccoli.  This recipe was born from elbow macaroni and spinach being the few food items left in my house. Everything worked just fine!)






P.S. -  HI READERS FROM RUSSIA!!  Good to have you all hanging out with me.  Again this week you were the country with the most readers/page views and I'm super excited to have you all over here!  I hope you're finding some great things or at least having a good laugh!

Kix and Coldplay

I thought this was supposed to be some sort of healthy eating food blog... what is this nonsense about Kix?  Isn't that against the law in low carb eating?  Well, yeah, but after a long day, sometimes all you need is a little Kix and some Coldplay.  Or, well, lol, maybe not.  "Nobody said it was eeeeeeeeeeaaaaasssyyyyyy" may not be the most inspirational post-midnight ballad ever written.  Just possibly.  Milk has protein right?   Hey, who died and made me expert?  There has to be a point where you can just stop and turn around and say, "OK LIFE,  ENOUGH OF YOUR CR@P!  I NEED TO GET SOME THINGS DONE HERE!"

But maybe it's just not like that.   What is it about Christ Martin's voice though in that song (there's a link!  go check it out!) that makes a person want to melt into nothing but still cry like a baby?   So, if you're looking for the super smart and healthy version of this recipe just know that for what I can tell, Kix doesn't have any really bad additives that will make my kids turn any weirder than they already are.  I have a couple gallons of organic milk, and even some organic almond milk in the fridge.  I'm doing something right here.  The bowl is of course hand crafted pottery, made in the USA, with no lead.  It's a winning streak!   The spoon I can't really vouch for, except to say that it was given to me from my grandmother, and I know it has some real silver in it, but your guess is as good as mine for what percentage is real.   Bowl + cereal + milk + spoon + Coldplay = careful not to cry into your milk but at least you'll have some food in you like I do now, after a while of having trouble eating.

At least we'll have a fun project coming up with the rose water I bought.  No guarantees, but I think this one will be lots of fun, especially if you're a fan (as much as I am) of coconut shakes.  I have not found anywhere locally that makes coconut shakes.  So, in my ever expanding waistline, erm, kitchen repertoire, there is now the ability to make a really awesome coconut shake.  Now, with kick!  Keep checking back, we're headed that direction!  Oh, and in case anyone here is a fan of SmittenKitchen, I'll be showing you one of her awesome recipes that I tried, that needs absolutely NO fixing but I can give you some alternatives!  It's a great meal!  Careful heading over there!! She's addictive, awesome and not always gluten/sugar free, but don't let that deter you.  Totally worth the drool in your keyboard!


This below picture was taken in Canada, many years ago, in front of the home of an amazing W.o.W. pvp player and old friend.  I'm almost shocked at how good the quality is, considering the camera I had at the time.
See you back here soon!

Fuzzy Slippers

For people with chronic illness (and mostly everyone who has to deal with a harsh reality,) there is a certain point that you hit, which signals, "stop, drop, and roll - before you detonate like a bomb."   There's only so much people can take; life is stressful and can be overly demanding.  So, when I called in for sushi takeout tonight, and showed up in my fuzzy house slippers, it didn't bother me one bit.   Mostly.  Today was filled with doctor issues and back and forth of a crazy schedule.  I was exhausted by 3p.m.  Everyone has those kinds of days.  Last week I had three different people tell me that life's been complicated and some of the recipes I have here seem equally so.

I have a couple things for you.  One, don't try a new recipe on a day that you're working late, driving the kids to practice all over town, or fried from a bad health day.  If it looks interesting and you'd like to try it, put the ingredients on a list, make sure you have all of them, and then on a day when you're inspired, give it a go.  If not, no worries.  There are plenty of other things (like takeout sushi) to eat for dinner.

In the spirit of simplicity, tiredness, and stressed out, today's recipe is a GREAT snack, very easy, takes 5 steps (not counting the ones to get to the kitchen) and then you're good for a while in front of the tv, Starcraft, or pretending to work with your head firmly planted on your desk.   Also, because I've been writing posts EVERY DAY in my head, but not here, I have some catching up to do.  You see, there were CONCERTS recently and do you think THIS fan is going to miss that?  OOOH NO!  LOL - I stood in 40 degree weather for 3 hours to watch some live Goo.  I have NO pictures!  Yes, I'm fine!  No, I didn't freeze.  Yes, my camera works.  I did get American Girl on video with my Galaxy but that was it.  Just jumped up and down until my pants fell off and screamed and waved and clapped until my hands and voice went numb.   I'll fill you in later.

Today is Bon Jovi's album release, and if you haven't heard it you should.  I'm not a huge fan, but this is GREAT stuff!

Enjoy!

Baked Chickpeas 
(anyone else seeing a glassy eyed, half lidded, pothead chickpea?  No?  Ok, movingon...)

1 can of chickpeas, drained, rinsed well, until no bubbles form
2 tsp rosemary
1 tBsp sea salt
1-2 tBsp olive oil/coconut oil of your choice (melted/liquid)

Preheat oven to 400.  Get a baking pan/cookie sheet, line with tin foil - shiny side up.  Pour your rinsed chickpeas into a zip bag with the oil, salt and rosemary.   Give it a few good shakes, pour out onto the pan.  Pop in the oven for 35-45 min.

YES there is a BIG time discrepancy here... I'll tell you why.  The first time I made them they were crispy on the outside and kinda not so much on the inside.  It tasted great all the same.  Then later, I forgot when I made them again, left them in the oven and they got a little DARK brown for my taste BUT this caused them to be crispy all the way through.

So, if you want them MORE brown and crsipy, leave them in longer.  If not, well take them out when they are just barely golden.


Here's "Because We Can"!
(and a pic of these yummy snacks... noooo...NOT the band...)

You Had To Be There

I wrote an awesome post last night.  Complete with amazing pictures, great commentary that every reader was hanging on to each word like it was the best.  It got a ton of page views and I was a cooking superstar.  Then I woke up (guess you just had to be there;) woke up this morning and realized the day had left with no post.  So, I figured a Saturday morning post would be great, then I slept in and was lazy.  Then I went on an adventure and now, my escapades have brought me back to you.

I got inspired mid week to warn about the nutritional deficiencies and sugar over abundance of juice.  Sometimes, I think people are out to get me with juice.  I see a mom handing a baby a bottle full of juice and I'm convinced it's a conspiracy (then I see moms handing kids bottles of Mountain Dew and I realize the world is just done for.)  But yesterday... oh yesterday....

I saw a mom buying her kid some sugar cereal yesterday in the grocery store.   Adorable little kid, normal guy, probably goes to daycare "Monday thru Friday"  7am to 6pm.  Mom probably picks him up, makes him a little dinner and puts him to bed only to start over the next morning at 4:30 a.m.  He'll get his little sugar cereal and be happy as a clam.   No problem right?  Kids are entitled to a little sugar.  What am I a sugar Nazi?  Who died and made me Queen Kill-All-The-Fun?

Well.  It's not that.  It's that somehow we here in this little country I live in of the USA, we've all been fooled into thinking eating carcinogens is totally cool.   Have you ever heard of BHT?  TBHQ?   Do you know what they are?  Would you eat them if you didn't know what they were?  Some people don't care.  That's fine, if you really don't care, maybe you should but I'm not going to argue.   I'm going to post some of the studies regarding these additives that are in KIDS' cereals.   Would you let your kids drink gasoline?  Do you know BHT is compound made from petroleum products (taken from phenol, taken from petroleum,) added to cereals and is a KNOWN carcinogen.  As in, no one is arguing that it causes cancer (except the EPA, and the government.)   And... we feed it in mass quantities to kids and put a label on the outside that says "natural" or "now less sugar" and expect parents to be cool about it.

Check out this info and these studies and make that call for yourself.  Are you a working parent (that would be all of us)?  Do you think your kids are getting the best foods from your hard earned money?  Look at the labels, don't fall for this parent trap.

As for the EPA... you know, that wonderful government institution which is supposed to protect consumers and the population from dangerous chemicals... they are certainly doing something about this right?  Nope.  Check it out.  They believe it safe.  Regardless what studies show, or what findings are.

In fact, THIS is the statement they have for BPA (the plastics residue that causes hormonal imbalances, infertility and possible birth defects,) which was ONLY addressed after so many parents started making a fuss over it.  They might "INITIATE" something, or perhaps "CONSIDER INITIATING" something else, but at this time... quote from website: "EPA does not intend to initiate regulatory action."



http://www.shape.com/blogs/shape-your-life/13-banned-foods-still-allowed-us

http://2ndgreenrevolution.com/2012/02/07/bht-the-secret-in-your-cereal/

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/bpa-chemical-found-environment-reproductive-scientists-report/story?id=18506698

I'll get back to the recipes, don't worry have some really good ones coming up!  I could have put one today, but I really think it may have been inappropriate while people are feeling sick to their stomachs over chemicals in food.
=)

Mid Week Miracle

I think to some degree it's a miracle that I'm posting mid week.  However, this is going to be short and to the point.   I'm kind of addicted to clean eating.  That doesn't mean, every once in a while, I can resist whipping up a disaster cake (hey, the design was good!) or splurging on a real sugar ice cream.   Yesterday, though was the local "natural living" store's sale and as usual it was packed in there.  I went in for two things and waited in line about 20 minutes to pay.  As I was waiting, I noticed a lot of things around me.  We care about our health and what we're eating, but does the radar shut off when we're in a so-called "health food store?"   Why all of a sudden is everything there good for us?   I find creams or lotions all the time with wheat in them, shampoos with preservatives and supplements with no overdose warnings.  Worse yet, the woman in front of me was buying a ton of extremely expensive organic 'power' juice.  It was a blend of a couple super foods but here's my beef with that:  you are not getting any nutrients from a fruit that has been juiced (unless you do this at home, blender style - whole fruit.)

I wanted to stop her and beg her to save her money.  She was heavy and more mature and I'm sure had been told that juice was good for her.  And perhaps it's good for her.  I want to encourage people to pick up your packages and read the carbohydrates and sugars in a food or item you're looking to buy, especially at the health food stores.  If you are cutting out excessive sugars, carbohydrates break down into sugars.  Nuts, sweet potatoes, and whole fruits and veggies are the best way to get carbohydrates.  Consuming juices, crackers, bread products and pastas do not hold much (if any) nutrition.   Even corn, which I do use quite a bit since going GF, is full of sugar.  GMO corn is even worse.  Many people battling with celiac are also starting to show corn sensitivities.  Check out this study.   The thing most don't realize, is that there are theories that autoimmune disorders can be caused, triggered or aggravated by the pesticides and herbicides used in vast quantities of these products.  And you would ask, "Well then why am I not reacting to other things grown with pesticides?"  Wheat is used in VAST amounts in our foods and processed foods.   Think about going GF for the first time.  Remember all the things you found that had wheat in them?   Do you find strawberries in so many of those things as well?   This does not mean people don't have strawberry sensitivities, but it is much less than wheat.

Enjoy your week, eat whole foods, skip the juice and come back on Friday because I've been cooking up some things in the kitchen this week!

Sunny Friday

Welcome to Friday!!  This is a beautiful, clear, sunny, bright, happy and awesome day!  It's been filled with some great things already.  First, I want to really address something I found on my website last week.
Last week, the amount of readers from Russia were double my readers from the States and Canada combined.  I'm super excited, thank you and all my readers who come here to read some seriously lengthy and inconsistent posts and hopefully enjoy some good recipes!  I really enjoy the internet's reach across oceans.  I had a friend living in Russia, teaching English for a while.  I have a Polish friend, Canadian friend, Bosnian friend, Costa Rican, Italian, Australian, Japanese, Chinese, English (UK!) Brazilian  and many many more!!   One of my friends, we call her a Guammy Bear - she's from Guam!  I'm not sure that's completely politically correct, but she rocks and it's all great fun.  I grew up in a small town where not a lot of come and go existed.  People lived their whole lives in that town, their kids lived there and then grandkids.  There was almost zero exposure to other cultures and customs.  The States are a very mobile people.  We do tend to move and when I was 13 we moved to an even SMALLER and close knit, non mobile town.  I couldn't wait to get out.  I never had money to travel, and when I first connected to the internet in 1998, and created a hotmail account, I used to beg my friends to email me after I moved away from home.  The internet has done horrible and wonderful things since then.  There are entire thesis' written about how the internet has corrupted cultures and destroyed traditions.  It's brought evil into homes and completely changed life as we know it.  For every negative though, you'll find a positive.   Information flows freely now, people can meet other people and learn about other cultures, schools are online - saving me personally - hundreds of dollars in gas, communication involves more than just a voice (Facetime/Skype) and the world can connect in one big abyss of collective knowledge.   Remind anyone else of the Borg?  No?  OK, let me beat back the inner nerd trying to surface.   Thank you, dad, for making sure I grew up a Star Wars AND Star Trek fan.  Nothing like being placed in the middle of a large, volatile, bloody, nerd vs. geek battleground.

So, I realize I "missed" last Friday.  I was exhausted and I'm sure you're thinking, "Really?  How hard is it to just post a recipe?"  Well, I like to test some of my recipes a few times to make sure they are working right and last week, the recipe I had, is the one I'm posting today.  I've made it quite a few times now, and  I'm COMPLETELY addicted and I hope you'll absolutely love it too!  There are some variations which will enhance or destroy the flavor you're looking for.  Choose wisely (Oh, Indiana Jones... how I miss you!)  If you don't like eggs or are like me, have really developed an aversion to them due to eating them for so long, give this a try!  It's very different and flavorful and it's not just "an egg."


Sunny Side Tacos
2 eggs
2 white or yellow corn tortillas (organic, non gmo preferably)
1 ounce of butter
2-4 ounces of your choice cheese (monterey jack, mozzarella, yorkshire, goat)
1 clove of garlic minced (if desired)
1 tSp of chopped onion (if desired)
1 ounce of fresh spinach (if desired)
sour cream (if desired)
cooked crumbled Italian sausage (if desired)
chopped cooked mushrooms (if desired)


Base Recipe! (use this to get started, add things as you go!)

Fry 2 tortillas in a buttered pan or griddle over medium heat until lightly browned - about 3 minutes a side.  When they are done, remove from pan, place on a plate and fold  in half.   In the buttered pan, over medium heat fry two eggs over easy or sunny side up until cooked about 2-4 minutes depending on how "slimy" you want your eggs.  (My kids HATE slimy eggs, so I cook them until all the white is set, but the yolk is still liquid... this is a nerve wracking process.  A little TOO long and it's all over, a little too short and it's all icky.)
When the eggs are cooked how you like them (yolks should still be runny,) remove from the pan and place one in each tortilla.  Butter the pan a little more, brown your garlic and onion in the pan about 5 minutes and throw in your spinach.  Twirl in the pan for about a minute or until the spinach has "wilted" but is not cooked through.  Place on top of the egg.

Now.  Get creative.  Add cheese, sausage, mushrooms, sour cream, tomatoes or NOTHING at this point.  Basically, try this recipe basic first, and then from there add one or two things.   Don't over do it, or you'll lose some of the foundation.   The first one I did had egg, white cheese, salsa and sour cream.  It was killer.  The next one I tried was egg, sausage, and spinach.   The most recent one I made was egg, yorkshire cheese with cranberries and spinach (pictured.)  It was brutally good.  Just remember your base:  tortilla, egg - then pick 2 "toppings" and go from there.  Below I've matched a few combinations to try, that are delicious.

Monterey Jack and sausage
spinach and Yorkshire with cranberries
salsa, white cheese and sour cream
sausage and mushrooms
Mozzarella and spinach
Sriracha and sour cream! (this one is out of my league but I KNOW some of you out there who are hot sauce fans will LOVE it!)

This makes a great dinner as well as breakfast.  So if you come home at the end of a long day and all you can think is, "I need something NOT complicated but delicious and healthy!"  Well, this is it!  Simple, healthy, delicious, and customizable!  You can't get a food better than that.  Enjoy!