Tuesdays are going to be a little rough for me. I work in Southfield on Tuesdays. Liv works all day and then has a night class. I have to drive home past every kind of fast food place imaginable, including my unicorn: Del Taco. I've never eaten there, but want to and I pass it on my way to and from the fair city of Southfield.
Anyway, tonight I have leftovers from the last two days to consider eating. But I felt like building The Vegestator anyway. It is a salad. I've never been a fan of salad until I realized one thing: Iceburg lettuce is a waste of my dang time. Iceburg lettuce is a waste of space and time and should be forced into extinction. Just drink water instead. Sheesh.
Saladous Maximus: The Vegestator
1 bunch kale
1 bunch red kale
1 bunch spinach
1 bunch dandelion leaves (just to freak people out)
2 or three carrots
1 can garbanzo beans
4 boiled eggs
cherry or grape tomatoes or regular tomatoes on the vine or whatever tomatoes you want.
Rinse all this stuff. Cut it up into bite size pieces. Mix it up in the biggest bowl you have. Sliver the boiled egg if you want to impress people.
Eat your salad and be astonished that you feel full. Make a lame joke about eating what your food eats or however it goes. Tell everyone you were vegetarian for one evening.
This makes, I don't know, a bunch of servings. I like to keep the greens in a huge plastic bowl with some water in it and add carrots and maters and eggs and beans to single servings when the time comes to eat. You can do however you want. Just don't let me hear that you put iceburg lettuce in there.
**~*~*~*~*This blog is designed to create accountability on our journey of food preparation.*~*~*~*~**
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Monday, June 29, 2015
Day 3: Monday, 6/29 ~ Josh's Indian Dish ~
Day 3: Monday, 6/29
~ Josh's Indian Dish ~
Alright everyone. Sit down. We need to talk. This is Jesse, filling in for Liv today because I think we need some real talk here for a minute.
Some of you disappoint me. I'm not telling you this to be mean. I'm telling you this as a concerned party who is only interested in your own good. I won't single anyone out. I'm not trying to embarrass anybody. I'll just say that you know who you are and leave it at that.
"I can't cook." "I wish I knew how to cook." "Some lame, dumb excuse." Naw. NAW. You throw a bunch of stuff in a bowl and heat it up through various means and there. You cooked. We're not trying to ward Gargamel away from or hidden village or anything, we're heating stuff up, chewing it, and digesting it. For crying out loud, gang.
The only issue you have to face is what stuff are you going to throw into the bowl. Here's a list of stuff that goes well together. I got this recipe from a friend- let's call him "Josh". Below you'll find the recipe as "Josh" gave it to me. Scroll down further if you want to see how I altered it. It's fine as is, but I had to alter it on principle because you aren't the boss of me.
Josh's Indian Dish
1 large or 2 small onions
1/2 - 1 tsp Tumeric
1/2 - 1 tsp Ground Corriander
1/2 - 1 tsp Ground Cumin
1/4 - 1/2 tsp Chili Powder
1/2 tsp Garam Masala
1 - 2 large carrots
1 head of broccoli
1/4 - 1/2 head of cauliflower
4 tsps vegetable/canola oil
1 tsp salt
1. Heat oil and put in cut onions. Cook low until onions soften.
2. Put in spices (mix first, excluding Garam Masala). Simmer 3-5 minutes.
3. Put in 2/3 cup of water.
4. Put in vegetables.
5. Stir and cook low (check every 10-15 minutes dpending on how many vegetables you used).
6. Put in Garam Masala and Mix. Let cook another 3-5 minutes.
7. Remove from heat and eat!
***Jesse's Amazing Customization***
I added diced tomatoes (one large can- see you don't even have to chop them 'maters yourself, slob)
1 can of chickpeas. Or, if you prefer, garbanzo beans.
3 small to medium sized potatoes. Because we had them and they started growing tentacles and horrid starburst eyeball things.
OH YEAH - you should probably pre-bake or boil the potatoes. They came out a little more firm than I'd like. That was on me and I'm sorry.
We used water instead of oil because we're not chumps.
We served over brown rice. I don't know what brand it was, it came from a bulk food store a long time ago. You can use white rice if you feel you have to be like that. It won't bother me. I'm not the rice police or anything.
"I can't cook." "I wish I knew how to cook." "Some lame, dumb excuse." Naw. NAW. You throw a bunch of stuff in a bowl and heat it up through various means and there. You cooked. We're not trying to ward Gargamel away from or hidden village or anything, we're heating stuff up, chewing it, and digesting it. For crying out loud, gang.
1 - 2 large carrots
Sunday, June 28, 2015
Day 2: Sunday, 6/28 ~Roasted Chickpea and Broccoli Burrito~
Day 2: Sunday, 6/28
~Roasted Chickpea and Broccoli Burrito~
Another one from Thug tonight. I was flipping through the book seeing what Jesse might put together for us this week ;0, and I just had to make this right away.
It was VERY good!
An odd thing though....both last night and tonight - wild dreams of chases and subterfuge. I remember, when I started eating better previously, enjoying supremely restful sleep. I wanted to quip about it being from 'Thug' recipes, but honestly it's probably the sugar of yesterday's cookie, which I also had for breakfast. Ah, well...
http://www.thugkitchen.com/roasted_chickpea_broccoli_burrito
Instead of the 3 Tbsp of olive oil, I used 1 Tbsp oil, and substituted the rest with water. Probably could have just used all water. Also, didn't have tortillas, but had some taco shells that needed eating. Odd to eat chickpeas out of a taco shell - but it tasted great!
Saturday, June 27, 2015
90 Day Challenge! Day 1: Saturday, 6/27 ~ Buffalo Falafel ~
90 Day Challenge
6/27/15 - 9/27/15
Cook food at home!
That is our number one priority!
While our ideal diet would be 80% plant-strong (no-oil vegan), unprocessed, homemade everything, and totally vegetarian - our bottom line is cooking it at home, no matter what it is! You'll see us eating dairy, and occasionally meat I'm sure. This is not about fighting food addictions, or perfect clean eating. I am currently baking a chocolate chip pan cookie. ( I did use flaxseed egg replacement, but that was because I do not have eggs on hand!) So....not about perfection. What I know is that the more I make things at home, and the more I start exercising (also not part of this blog), the more I will want to eat better things, and even pan cookies will go by the wayside for a while.
Day 1: Saturday, 6/27
~ Buffalo Falafel ~
A spicy way to kick things off - both verbally and gastronomically! The voice in my head reading these recipes is Samuel L's. If Jesse and I read them aloud, we can barely understand what is being said because of all the hesitations and substitutions. ;0
But - they definitely make me laugh. And they will definitely make you come back for more!
http://www.thugkitchen.com/buffalo_falafel
My first batch I had a little trouble. I used crumbled crackers instead of bread crumbs - not sure if that was the difference. Probably also should have added a little water. The second batch I refrigerated first before baking, and they turned out great.
These are a little different than the Falafel you might get at a restaurant - namely because they are not fried!
We also just used commercial Buffalo sauce because we had some open (and shoot - we're cooking one thing already, right?). ;0 We just had them on their own. So yummy and very filling!
So, that was our lupper at about 4:30/5, and now at 11:30 I'm about to have a piece of this pan cookie.
https://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/29677/original-nestle-toll-house-chocolate-chip-pan-cookie/?keywords=pan+cookie
As I mentioned, I used flaxseed instead of egg. 1 Tbsp flaxseed meal (ground flaxseed) with 3 Tbsp water, let sit a few minutes - watch it congeal, sorta neat. :) This equals 1 egg. Adds fiber, reduces cholesterol. In a cookie like this, no one would ever know the difference.
Fortunately, Jesse is not a chocolate lover. He may take a crumb from the corner of a piece - and the rest will be donated to my family tomorrow. :)
And, no....dinner will not usually be a cookie. Saturdays are always a little odd, and today he's at D&D. Which means the cats and I have time to bake. Any vapors of guilt I might have about posting this for Day 1 are evaporated with the smile of doing something I love, with the 'people' I love. :)
But - they definitely make me laugh. And they will definitely make you come back for more!
http://www.thugkitchen.com/buffalo_falafel
My first batch I had a little trouble. I used crumbled crackers instead of bread crumbs - not sure if that was the difference. Probably also should have added a little water. The second batch I refrigerated first before baking, and they turned out great.
These are a little different than the Falafel you might get at a restaurant - namely because they are not fried!
We also just used commercial Buffalo sauce because we had some open (and shoot - we're cooking one thing already, right?). ;0 We just had them on their own. So yummy and very filling!
So, that was our lupper at about 4:30/5, and now at 11:30 I'm about to have a piece of this pan cookie.
https://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/29677/original-nestle-toll-house-chocolate-chip-pan-cookie/?keywords=pan+cookie
As I mentioned, I used flaxseed instead of egg. 1 Tbsp flaxseed meal (ground flaxseed) with 3 Tbsp water, let sit a few minutes - watch it congeal, sorta neat. :) This equals 1 egg. Adds fiber, reduces cholesterol. In a cookie like this, no one would ever know the difference.
Fortunately, Jesse is not a chocolate lover. He may take a crumb from the corner of a piece - and the rest will be donated to my family tomorrow. :)
And, no....dinner will not usually be a cookie. Saturdays are always a little odd, and today he's at D&D. Which means the cats and I have time to bake. Any vapors of guilt I might have about posting this for Day 1 are evaporated with the smile of doing something I love, with the 'people' I love. :)
Freedom
So, this blog was going to begin with a specious statement about 'not feeling it, but being committed to doing it anyway no matter what'.
Well - a lot of the uncertainty about this venture has been at least temporarily tamped out by what I just discovered.
In May, we spent $490.42 on fast food/eating out, and probably another $50-100 on junk. Now, that month we were moving, and we did have a weekend trip for a conference - but even so, this is just an incredible amount of money. Not to be totally disgusting, but it's like I just flushed 40+ hours of my life down the toilet - literally. (Maybe I have been hanging out with Jesse too much.)
Seriously, though - if I could capture this ill feeling in my stomach right now - I might just be able to deal with my food addictions.
The sad thing is - we would likely eat that way all the time if we were able. The siren song of fast food, crooning to us about convenience and emotional salve, is very strong. The only thing that has consistently kept us under an astronomical figure such as that is our financial means.
For instance, in June we spent $71.68 on 'fast food' using the debit card, and most likely another $40 with cash. And of course, probably another $80 on junk food. And this was one of the leaner months, where we actually ate at home more often because we were 'poor'. While a third of the previous month, it is still TOO MUCH!
Too much money wasted, given to lousy corporations, too much time wasted feeling sick, not having energy, and not reaching my goals! Too many moments spent feeling trapped, degrading ourselves verbally and physically. TOO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just too much.
When you're feeling 'too much', you have to look at the little. The daily (or momentary) action that with consistent application over a period of time will overcome the 'too much'. And, for a lot of my 'too much'es right now - that is eating healthy food COOKED at home. Notice in the previous paragraph I just said 'ate' at home. A lot of that was canned or frozen pre-processed junk. Slightly cheaper than eating prepared for you junk - but not a whole lot more satisfying.
Anyway - enough back story. Well, a little more back story. We started this blog a few years ago. It made a difference. In the short-term, the feeling of achievement and physical results, such as lower A1C levels and weight loss. In the long-term, knowledge and skills about food preparation that I think I still have in the recesses of my mind. It really was a huge accomplishment for us, and it has continued to impact our lives. Even now, when we're humbly admitting we have a problem and are essentially hitting 'reset'....the reason we got to this point of reaching out for help was because we know what it CAN be like when we are in line with our food goals.
Yesterday, Jesse said that he would like to stop eating fast food, stop (or at least greatly reduce) meat-eating, eliminate store-bought chips, and reduce or eliminate Slurm (soda). We've had many such conversations since the last time we ran this blog. MANY. When he said this yesterday, I was thinking - yeah, yeah, knowing it would help on so many levels, but not even really caring to commit to it. But we need to.
Our why:
Jesse - he is not doing well. He needs to get his diabetes under control. He's losing his eyesight and his ankles are swelling, which combined with general fatigue makes me very concerned for his heart/blood vessels. Recently, when I mentioned something about 20 years from now, he seriously told me he wouldn't make it that long. I would like to have my husband with me for much longer than that - and while I do not want to face it, even while typing this, I know the reality is - if we don't fix our diet and exercise - he's right.
Me - well, I may as well say it. Who knows if anyone is reading this anyway. ;0 Um....I want to have a baby. I've wanted to for a long time. And I'm at the age where it needs to happen soon. But I'm very overweight, and have various health concerns that would easily be rectified if I ate right and exercised.
Us - it would be nice to do things that we like to do. Namely - our short term goal is to be able to go to Cedar Point, and ride more rides!! As it is, I could really only fit on Ocean Motion and some of the other 'kiddie rides'. Jesse could fit on much more, but not everything. And because he's not in great shape, the rides he did go on he found challenging instead of fulfilling.
It would be nice to find these kids again - and ensure they have a bright, happy, and healthy future together.
Well - a lot of the uncertainty about this venture has been at least temporarily tamped out by what I just discovered.
In May, we spent $490.42 on fast food/eating out, and probably another $50-100 on junk. Now, that month we were moving, and we did have a weekend trip for a conference - but even so, this is just an incredible amount of money. Not to be totally disgusting, but it's like I just flushed 40+ hours of my life down the toilet - literally. (Maybe I have been hanging out with Jesse too much.)
Seriously, though - if I could capture this ill feeling in my stomach right now - I might just be able to deal with my food addictions.
The sad thing is - we would likely eat that way all the time if we were able. The siren song of fast food, crooning to us about convenience and emotional salve, is very strong. The only thing that has consistently kept us under an astronomical figure such as that is our financial means.
For instance, in June we spent $71.68 on 'fast food' using the debit card, and most likely another $40 with cash. And of course, probably another $80 on junk food. And this was one of the leaner months, where we actually ate at home more often because we were 'poor'. While a third of the previous month, it is still TOO MUCH!
Too much money wasted, given to lousy corporations, too much time wasted feeling sick, not having energy, and not reaching my goals! Too many moments spent feeling trapped, degrading ourselves verbally and physically. TOO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just too much.
When you're feeling 'too much', you have to look at the little. The daily (or momentary) action that with consistent application over a period of time will overcome the 'too much'. And, for a lot of my 'too much'es right now - that is eating healthy food COOKED at home. Notice in the previous paragraph I just said 'ate' at home. A lot of that was canned or frozen pre-processed junk. Slightly cheaper than eating prepared for you junk - but not a whole lot more satisfying.
Anyway - enough back story. Well, a little more back story. We started this blog a few years ago. It made a difference. In the short-term, the feeling of achievement and physical results, such as lower A1C levels and weight loss. In the long-term, knowledge and skills about food preparation that I think I still have in the recesses of my mind. It really was a huge accomplishment for us, and it has continued to impact our lives. Even now, when we're humbly admitting we have a problem and are essentially hitting 'reset'....the reason we got to this point of reaching out for help was because we know what it CAN be like when we are in line with our food goals.
Yesterday, Jesse said that he would like to stop eating fast food, stop (or at least greatly reduce) meat-eating, eliminate store-bought chips, and reduce or eliminate Slurm (soda). We've had many such conversations since the last time we ran this blog. MANY. When he said this yesterday, I was thinking - yeah, yeah, knowing it would help on so many levels, but not even really caring to commit to it. But we need to.
Our why:
Jesse - he is not doing well. He needs to get his diabetes under control. He's losing his eyesight and his ankles are swelling, which combined with general fatigue makes me very concerned for his heart/blood vessels. Recently, when I mentioned something about 20 years from now, he seriously told me he wouldn't make it that long. I would like to have my husband with me for much longer than that - and while I do not want to face it, even while typing this, I know the reality is - if we don't fix our diet and exercise - he's right.
Me - well, I may as well say it. Who knows if anyone is reading this anyway. ;0 Um....I want to have a baby. I've wanted to for a long time. And I'm at the age where it needs to happen soon. But I'm very overweight, and have various health concerns that would easily be rectified if I ate right and exercised.
Us - it would be nice to do things that we like to do. Namely - our short term goal is to be able to go to Cedar Point, and ride more rides!! As it is, I could really only fit on Ocean Motion and some of the other 'kiddie rides'. Jesse could fit on much more, but not everything. And because he's not in great shape, the rides he did go on he found challenging instead of fulfilling.
It would be nice to find these kids again - and ensure they have a bright, happy, and healthy future together.
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