Back in the Kitchen

Wow, I can't believe it's Thursday already! This week has FLOWN by. I'm already getting excited for the weekend!

It's been a busy week. On Monday, my son woke up with a bad cold and it also rained over 5 inches (!!) in my town, so we decided to just stay inside all day and snuggle in my chair. We read books, watched Cars, played with some toys, and were just cuddle bunnies all day :) My son is just the sweetest little thing and it makes me sad to see him sick. But it was good to just take a day and rest. It was not, however, a good day for me and my juicer. Apparently, even some juices are a little too hardcore for me.

I didn't have cucumber, lemon juice, fruit, or anything else to make this taste better. It was straight up collard leaves, celery, ginger, carrot, and romaine. It was not good. I consoled myself with a delicious carrot-ginger smoothie afterward.

On Tuesday, he was feeling a little better, so we made a quick run to BJ's to stock up on the essentials. In my house, the essentials are: 6 cartons of Silk soymilk, 1 large bottle of carrot juice, 2 English cucumbers, 1 lb of baby spinach, 9 lbs of bananas (hey, those smoothies don't make themselves!), a 4-lb bag of raisins, a gallon of Almond Breeze almond milk, and Megamind. (Okay, Megamind isn't technically an essential, but it's very funny...and it was on sale :)

Yesterday, my hubby surprised me by coming home from work at 9:30 in the morning and announcing that he had taken the rest of the day off. This was indeed surprising, as he's only taken one day off this entire year! I was totally psyched. My son seemed to be feeling better, too, so we decided to pack up and head to the beach. I grew up in Newport, RI, and my parents still live there, so we headed on down to their house so we could hit the beach with my Mom.

He could spend hours playing this game: "Where's my foot? Where's my foot? There it is!"

I think he had a little too much fun at the beach, though, because he woke up feeling warm this morning :( So, another day in the house was called for. My son actually asked to cook something with me this morning (*swoon*), so I decided we should make some snacky food. I thought it would be fun to try something out of Peas and Thank You, since I hadn't made anything out of the cookbook yet.

First up: Pumpkin Spice-Roasted Chickpeas (recipe here). Chickpeas, maple syrup, canola oil, cider vinegar, salt, nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon are tossed together and roasted until they become crispy. Here are the chickpeas, fresh out of the toaster oven:

 I put them in a little container in the fridge for easy snackin':

We also made Chewy Energy bars (recipe similar to the one here). Maybe these will help me kick my Larabar habit.

After these were done, my poor little guy was needing a nap, so I put him to bed and then came downstairs, pondering what to make for lunch. I was feeling like chickpea salad, so I started grabbing some stuff out of the fridge and pantry, and in 5 minutes flat, I had a tasty lunch ready!

Speedy Chickpea Salad
Serves 4

1 15-oz can organic chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons Vegenaise
1 tablespoon capers plus 2 teaspoons brine
2 medium stalks celery, finely chopped
1 scallion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dulse granules (can substitute sea salt, to taste)

Mash chickpeas in a sturdy bowl with a potato masher. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine.

I decided to use it in some collard wraps. I destemmed a large collard leaf, then added some romaine lettuce and a big scoop of my chickpea salad.

I topped this with some sliced grape tomatoes...

And then rolled it up like a burrito.

I also had some stuffed into some little romaine leaves. I actually preferred these to the collard wrap!

I was pretty happy with how my quick 'n easy lunch turned out!

My son's up from his nap, and he just told me "I'm upset because you're on the computer." I think it's time for me to sign off :)

Noodles, Hemp-anola, and a New Smoothie

Greetings from rainy Rhode Island! It's been drizzly and dreary outside today. Yesterday was gorgeous, however, so I can't really complain too much.

Our Saturday started out perfectly. We woke up and it was 59 degrees outside! No humidity, no wind, just a gorgeous, fall-like sunny morning. My hubby, son, and I went out for our first run since our half-marathon, and it felt great to get our legs moving again. My son must have enjoyed the fresh air, because he fell asleep in the jogging stroller. Apparently, somebody was tired! And not just the two parents who actually ran 6 miles! :)

My son has not been eating all that well lately - he's going through a phase of rejecting "real" food and only wanting to eat cereal, fruit, and Larabars. He does love pasta and nut butter sandwiches, though, so I thought I'd try to combine both of those elements into a meal he might actually enjoy - Noodles with Spicy Peanut Sauce from 1,000 Vegan Recipes. However, I soon discovered that I had neither peanut butter nor Asian noodles in the house, so I had to make a couple of substitutions - brown rice spaghetti for the Asian noodles, and sunflower seed butter for the peanut butter. I also omitted the Asian chile paste, since I'm not sure my son would have liked the heat. The other ingredients sounded promising, though - green onions, garlic, ginger, sugar, tamari, and rice vinegar, simmered together with the peanut (sunflower seed) butter; sauteed veggies (I used onions, red bell pepper, sliced baby carrots, and broccoli); and a topping of chopped peanuts. I figured, if nothing else, my son might get a few veggies and some healthy fats into him. In less than 30 minutes, I had dinner on the table. Now, come on, doesn't that look good?

My hubby sure thought so. He ate a big plate and then went back for seconds. My son, on the other hand, only ate about two bites. *Sigh* Toddlers!

After my son went to bed last night, I decided to take my frustration out on a batch of homemade granola. I made Dreena Burton's Hemp-anola from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan, and it didn't disappoint. It has a lot of my favorite ingredients - oats, hemp seeds, coconut, almonds, cinnamon, blackstrap molasses, maple syrup, and raisins - and it was a breeze to whip up. So much healthier - and CHEAPER! - than the store-bought stuff:

This morning, I was not craving any particular smoothie. I think I'd had a chocolate-cherry smoothie every day this week, and I felt like having something different this morning. I looked in my freezer and spotted some blueberries and blackberries. Suddenly, I started tossing this 'n that into my Vita-Mix, and behold, a new smoothie was born!

Black, Blue, and Basil Smoothie
Makes 1 large serving / 2 small servings

1 cup frozen blueberries
1 cup frozen blackberries
1 large frozen banana
1/2" knob fresh ginger
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup fresh basil
1/4 cup fresh mint

Toss all ingredients into Vita-Mix or other high-speed blender. Blend on high until smooth.

After I got home from church this morning, I was pretty hungry. My breakfast smoothie was good, but there were no fats or proteins in it to help keep me full. Then I remembered my Hemp-anola and the delicious organic strawberries in my fridge. I knew exactly what I wanted for a snack!

A big, fat bowl of Hemp-anola, some sliced strawberries and bananas, and some almond milk. Yummmm. 

It was sooooo gooood! I haven't had homemade granola in a really long time, but it was definitely worth the wait!

Question of the day: how do you get your finicky toddler to eat his dinner?

Hearts of Palm and Jicama Salad

Sometimes, you find a great recipe where you least expect it. Two winters ago, I was in Florida visiting my parents for a week. My mom subscribes to Southern Living magazine and she noted a recipe in the February 2010 issue that she thought I might enjoy. For whatever reason, I always figured Southern Living would be full of recipes like Southern-Fried Chicken and Deep-Fried Donuts. I didn't think it would have anything remotely vegan, but sure enough, the recipe she'd noted was vegan, and it sounded really good, too - Hearts of Palm and Jicama Salad. It featured avocado, yellow pepper, jicama, and hearts of palm, something I'd heard of but never actually tried. I thought it would make a light and refreshing dinner salad, so we went off to the market and got what we needed. The salad was easy to prepare, and it was just perfect on a balmy night.

I've been in a main-dish-salad mood lately, so I dug out the recipe and made it again last night. I added a can of navy beans to bump up the protein and served it over baby spinach to make it a bit more filling.

I guess I was really hungry last night, because I was halfway through my meal when I realized I hadn't taken a photo of my plate. Oops!

Hearts of palm are pretty yummy! I can see myself adding them to more salads in the future....

Roasted Beet and Cashew Goat Cheez Salad (and Bread and Pancakes)

I don't know what's gotten into me, but I have been on a baking tear this last week or so. I think I've done more baking in the last 7 days than I've done in the last 7 years. No kidding! I've always found baking to be somewhat frustrating in its precision - just the right amount of wet, just the right amount of dry, chemical reactions, humidity, blah blah blah. I've already lost interest just talking about it. But I've been feeling inspired to bake more things to stick in my freezer - waffles, quick breads, cookies, and today - pancakes!

Today's specimen: Pumpkin Pancakes from Vegan Brunch. I've only made these once before, but I still remember it like it was yesterday: warm, fragrant, autumnal flapjacks, topped with a delicious ginger-cranberry sauce. Mmmm.

But no such sauce today. Today's work was just about making pancakes for the freezer. I decided to make a double batch, since it really wasn't much more work to do so. I'm glad I did. If I have to get so many dishes dirty, it may as well be worth it!

Here's the first batch, getting all cozy and warm on the griddler:

They came out delightfully thin and soft.

Once they cooled, I stacked them all up. I just thought it would be fun to make a gigantic stack and pretend I was going to eat it like a giant.

But then I came to my senses and stuck them in a freezer bag. I'll be so glad to pull these out of the freezer whenever I need a quick breakfast or snack for my son! Or me.

Since I opened a gigantic can of canned pumpkin, I still had a whole lot of it left. Fortunately, I knew just what to do with it. It's called Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread.

But you know what's better than one big loaf of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread?

Yeaaaah. Three mini loaves of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread. Holla!

I've been making this bread for a couple of years. It's awesome. I've doctored the recipe up a million different ways, and it always comes out great. Today, I made a healthier version, substituting white whole wheat flour, agave syrup, maple syrup, applesauce, and flax "eggs"for the white flour, white sugar, margarine, and egg substitute, respectively. I also used 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and 1/2 cup of chopped pecans instead of 1 full cup of chocolate chips. Normally I do the full cup of chocolate chips, and it is decadently delicious. I decided to show a little restraint today. These babies, too, are going in the freezer. This bread freezes unbelievably well and makes a perfect packable snack for road trips. Or for just eating by yourself, standing in front of your kitchen sink while your son is napping. Ahem.

But even with all this baking, I figured I still needed to make something, you know, respectable and vegetable-y for dinner. I mean, there was pumpkin in the pancakes and the quick bread, but let's be serious.

I had some softball-sized beets hanging out in my crisper drawer, so I thought it would be a perfect night to have a Roast Beet, Goat Cheez, and Spinach Salad from Choosing Raw.

This is easily one of our favorite main-dish salads, if not one of our favorite meals, entirely. My hubby ALWAYS tells me what a nice surprise it is to have this for dinner! There are a few steps involved, but it's really not too bad to put together. The cashew goat cheez is amazing. I don't actually make Gena's version of goat cheez, but I do something similar. I soak some cashews and then food process them along with some miso, lemon juice, salt, water, basil, pepper, agave, and white balsamic vinegar. It's tangy and succulent and super-delish!

Other than that, it's just roasting some beets and whisking together a simple lemon-dijon vinaigrette. Aren't those beets gorgeous? Served over a bed of baby romaine and baby spinach, it's a great summer (or winter) salad. Some raw chopped walnuts add some crunch and earthy flavor.

I'm always looking for ideas for more vegan main-dish salads. What are your favorites?

Rock n Roll Providence Half Marathon

Yesterday, my hubby and I ran the Rock n Roll Providence Half-Marathon. It rained 2.25 inches in Providence yesterday. Most of the precipitation occurred during the morning hours, when the race was being held. It rained so much that some of the bands didn't even perform. It rained so much that 1,500 or so people who signed up for the race either didn't race at all, or didn't finish the race. It was WET. It was WINDY. It was easily the craziest weather I've ever run in.

But here's the thing. When you train for a race, or specifically a half-marathon, you prepare yourself and your body for a certain amount of punishment. You slog out the miles over a period of weeks and months, alternating tempo runs with track sprints, short runs with long runs, slow runs with fast runs. You build up both your weekly mileage and your total number of running days per week. For example, the last (and only other) half-marathon I ran was the 2007 Applefest Half Marathon in Hollis, NH. I diligently followed a 16-week training plan in Runner's World that had me start running 3 times a week for about 12 miles and finished with me running 5 days a week for about 30 miles. By the time I toed the line for my first half-marathon, I had several 10-, 11-, and 12-mile runs under my belt. (Incidentally, I was also childless, so I had plenty of time at my disposal to run said miles). I felt well-prepared, confident, and ready to tackle the race. And indeed, I ran pretty well in the race. Although my goal was to finish under 2 hours, I finished in 2:10:21 on a record-setting 85-degree October day. Considering how hot the day was, I was quite pleased with myself. All of my hard work had paid off.

Now, fast forward three years to August 2010. I saw that the Rock N Roll Half Marathon was coming to Providence in 2011. My interest was immediately piqued. Since becoming a mom in May 2009, my running had taken somewhat of a backseat to parenting. Sure, I still got out for early-morning runs before my hubby went to work, but the mileage was definitely low - usually 3-4 miles - and I only ran 3 days a week. When I heard about the Rock N Roll Half, I thought to myself, Aha! Just what I need...some motivation to get myself in running shape again. It's perfect - I'll have a year to get myself ready and train! I filled out applications for myself and my hubby and smiled with a sense of satisfaction. Maybe, just maybe, I'll even beat my Applefest time. I even put myself down for an estimated finish time of 2:00:00.

Now, fast forward one year to Saturday, July 23, 2011. I knew it was two weeks and one day til the race. I should have been completing my last 12-mile long run before the half-marathon.

I did a long run, alright.

5.6 miles.

That was the longest run I'd done in almost a month. I did run 6.1 miles on July 2. The longest run before that? On May 18, I ran 6.08 miles. And this is where it gets really good. Before that, the last time I'd run 6 miles was in October 2010.

So much for my "year of training."

But back to the 5.6 miles on July 23. Boy, did that run make me tired. I mean really, I was pooped. I lost count of the number of times I said to my hubby, yeah, I am SO not running the half-marathon.


How could I?

The last time I'd ran a half - you know, the one I trained 16 weeks to run - I had built up to running 30 miles a week. This time? I'd run 30 miles...it just took me three weeks.

And then, the icing on the cake? On Sunday, July 24 at approximately 11:10 pm, I woke up from my slumber and stumbled to the bathroom. I knelt in front of my toilet and revisited the contents of my dinner. For good measure, I did this again at 12:15, and had an encore at 1:20. By this time, there was nothing left.

I woke up the next morning feeling like my head had been stuck in a vice and squeezed. My stomach felt terrible, I was achy, and I had no desire to eat. For the next 6 days, I pretty much existed on dry toast, brown rice pasta, water, and bananas. Forget exercising. I spent most of my days tending to my son and sitting on my recliner. I did go to the beach with my son and mom on the Wednesday of that week, but this proved to be idiotic behavior on my part, because I felt worse than ever on Thursday and Friday. Finally, blessedly, I started feeling better on Sunday, and Monday I started feeling somewhat human again.

That would be Monday, August 1. Six whole days before the half-marathon.

Let's recap.

1. I was barfing last week.
2. I hadn't eaten much of anything last week.
3. I hadn't exercised at all.
4. I had not been training for the race.
5. My longest run in the last year - I'm talking, 365 days - was 6.21 miles, completed on August 7, 2010. One calendar year to the day of this year's Rock N Roll Half.
6. A half-marathon is 13.1 miles. That would be more than double my longest run in the Entire.Last.Year.
7. I am not a fast runner to begin with. Heck, I'm not even a natural runner. I actually went out for tennis in high school instead of soccer because I didn't want to run during practices. Yes, seriously.

It was so not looking good for me.

In fact, I think it was on Monday, August 1 that I told my husband that I wasn't going to be running the race. There was just no way, I said.

He nodded sympathetically, and asked if I minded if he ran anyway. Even though part of me was a teensy bit jealous, I said okay. Guess what happened?

On Tuesday, August 2, my hubby woke up sick. And he was sick for two whole days.

Well, I thought...there's always next year.

But then my hubby did a funny (crazy) thing. He woke up on Thursday morning and felt better. Apparently, he felt so much better that he snuck out of the house and went for a run. I woke up confused, wondering where he was. Then he came into our bedroom and said he'd been out for a run. I told him he was nuts. Hello, weren't you just really sick? But as quickly as his illness came, it departed. He was determined to run on Sunday.

I, however, was only determined to run the next day - Friday. I had run 3 miles on Tuesday and felt okay - not great, but okay. I wanted to see how I felt on Friday. So, on Friday morning, I got up and ran 4.35 miles. I felt okay (again). It was about this time that I decided that if my hubby was crazy enough to run the race, then so was I.

Nevermind the overwhelming evidence that I was indeed not ready to run this race.

I remember feeling eerily calm on Saturday, the day before the race. I mean, what exactly did I have to lose? It's not like I'd trained for this. I wouldn't exactly feel like I'd wasted my time and effort completing a 16-week training plan or anything.

My goal - which I explicitly and repeatedly stated to my husband - was to just finish the race. I knew this would take some combination of running, jogging, walking, and maybe even crawling along. I didn't really care. I just wanted the race to be over with.

And then? We heard the forecast for Sunday.

100% chance of rain. Thunderstorms likely. Winds upwards of 20 miles an hour.

Really?

Really.

I woke up on Sunday morning at 4:45. I hadn't slept well (what a shock, right?) I knew I had to run 13.1 miles beginning in approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes. I ate a banana and drank a little water. When we got to Providence, we took cover under a tree while it poured buckets all around us. I didn't warm up. I didn't even jog in place. I simply got into my corral at the appointed time, gave my hubby a fist-bump, and said good luck. I also said a prayer to God that He would help us finish this race and keep us safe. To be completely honest, I couldn't wait for this thing to be over.

At the signal, we began. Like most races, I went out a little too fast. It happens - you get caught up in the excitement and the fast pace of the other runners. Being in the fifth corral, I was running alongside people who expected to finish in 2 hours flat. That translates to a 9:10-mile average for 13.1 miles. Pretty fast, right? Especially for someone who didn't train? And was recently sick? And who doesn't run fast to begin with? And who ran her last half-marathon - fully trained - with a 9:59-mile average pace? Right.

Here's what happened:

I crossed the first mile mark at about 0:09:30. I crossed the second mile mark at around 0:19:00. I hit the 5K mark (3.1 miles) at 0:28:32. At this point, I was averaging a 9:11-mile. Not too shabby.

Shortly after I passed the 5-mile mark, my knees started to hurt. A lot. Both of them. The outside part of each of my knees burned with every single step I took.

And this is when I thought, well, this is it for me. 5 miles. Disappointing, yes, but what did I expect. I haven't run much more than this in the last year anyway.

But then, the words of Psalm 23 came to me. Specifically, the verse "For thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." And suddenly, I wasn't running under my own power anymore. God was carrying me.

My knees still hurt with every step. My quads began to burn. And yet, I kept putting one foot in front of the other, sloshing through deep puddles. I never stopped running. I ran the entire time. I hit the 10-mile mark at exactly 1:32:00. This was a 9:12-mile average.

Whoa.

At this point, it was just 3.1 miles to go, or another 5K. I really couldn't believe it. My breathing was steady. I was not fatigued at all. I had no cramps or side stitches. I wasn't tired. The only things that were really hurting were my knees and my quads.

I realized: I can do this.

What I actually said to myself was: I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13.

I prayed this verse. I prayed this verse many, many times. I prayed it as my knees ached because my sneakers were completely soaked through and weighed an extra 2 pounds a piece from the rain. I hit mile 12 at 1:51:08 (9:15-mile pace). Just over a mile to go. I took my final swig of coconut water and began my dash to the finish line.

Yes, dash to the finish line.

No huffing or puffing. I was completely in control of my breathing, and I started to pick up my pace. I was running.

The race ended with a turn onto Francis Street in front of the Providence Place Mall. All that was between me and the finish line was one final hill. The biggest hill of the entire race, incidentally.

Let me tell you something - I hauled booty up that hill. I lengthened my stride, pumped my arms, and literally flew up that hill. I heard one of the spectators call out, "Great stride! Way to finish!!"

I crossed the finish line with a gigantic smile on my face.

My time?

2:01:31.

That's a 9:16-mile pace.

For a race I didn't train for. For a race I wasn't even going to do 3 days ago. For 13.1 miles, more than twice as long as I have run in over a year.

I ran the entire time. I did not stop to walk. I did not stop to take a power gel, or a swig of Cytomax or water. I did not stop to go to the bathroom.

I did not stop at mile 5, when I thought my race was over.

I ran, and I kept on running, because of the power of God in me. God did that for me. God showed me what He can do when I just surrender to Him.

I didn't have the ability to run that race on my own. How on Earth could I have trained for the other half and finished in 2:10, and not trained for this one and finish in 2:01? In a complete, torrential downpour and windstorm? How?

There is no answer but God. And this will be my testimony. When I think of this race (and believe me, I will never forget this race), I will have an amazing story to tell.

But it's not about what I did. It's about what God did.

Believe me when I say this - I can be prideful. I can be full of myself and believe I had success because of something I did.

But not this time. This was all God. I am so completely amazed and humbled at what He showed me yesterday. And He can do amazing things in your life, too. Just ask Him!

Baking Bonanza

Yesterday morning, my son and I were puttering around the house, trying to think of something fun to do. Well, at least I was puttering around - my son was contentedly plopped on the living room floor, hoovering some Kashi cereal and watching Curious George. What to do, what to do. Then, I had a flash of inspiration...

"Hey, J...do you want to cook with Mommy....again?"

Hey, I didn't say it was a flash of genius, or creativity, or ingenuity. I mean, it's not like we didn't just cook together a few days ago. But we'd had a lot of fun, and I was feeling ready for our second cooking session. My son happily agreed and dragged a chair over to the kitchen counter.

I was feeling very ambitious. I decided we would tackle not one, not two, but three different recipes. I wanted to make some waffles to freeze for easy breakfasts; some quick bread for easy snacks; and some more healthy cookies, because, well, who doesn't love cookies?!

I knew the waffles would take forever to make, so I decided to start with them. I opened Vegan Brunch to our favorite recipe, Gingerbread Waffles. Spiced with ginger, cinnamon, and cloves, these molasses-sweetened treats are a big hit in my household. Here, get close and take a whiff...

Mmm....gingerbready!

While the waffles were cooking, we started on our next recipe, Ginger-Molasses Bread with Blueberries from 1,000 Vegan Recipes. I guess I was in a gingery-molasses-y kind-of-mood yesterday, I don't know. Anyway, my son was thoroughly perplexed when we made vegan "buttermilk" by mixing soy milk and cider vinegar together. He couldn't understand why his beloved beverage started to look so...curdled. Fortunately, he didn't dwell on this too long. Once I gave him a wooden spoon and a measuring cup loaded with blueberries, he was one happy camper.

But let's face it...while he was happy to be helping make the bread, what he really wanted to do was make the cookies. So, after we got the batter made and put the bread in the oven, it was cookie time.

When it comes to cookies, I don't mess around. I don't bake all that often, but when I do, I want the cookies to be good. I mean, gooooooood. There's no one I trust more for cookie awesomeness than the cookie queen herself, Dreena Burton. Seriously, the woman knows her cookies. Her recipes are very specific in terms of how long to cook, how long to keep them on the cookie sheet after they come out of the oven, and how big to make them. If you follow her directions, you're sure to come out with delicious cookies every time. As a bonus, her cookies are usually loaded with healthy ingredients, like whole-grain flours, natural sweeteners, and superfoods like chia and hemp. In short, they're yummy cookies I feel good about giving my son!

We got to work on making the Super-Charge Me! Cookies from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan. These cookies contain oats, whole-grain flour, coconut, raisins, carob chips, maple syrup, and almond butter. Yum!

Soon after, we had the cookies in the oven, the bread in the toaster oven, and waffles coming off the waffle iron. It smelled heavenly in the kitchen!

Witness our bounty: first, the gingerbread waffles, cooling on the rack:

A close-up of a Super-Charge Me! Cookie:

And more of his little friends:

Finally, the Ginger-Molasses Bread with Blueberries was ready:

By this time, J and I were hungry from all our cooking. He wanted to try some of the bread, so I cut us each a piece and slathered them with some Earth Balance.

That's his Buzz Lightyear plate, BTW. Not mine.

I took a bite, and ZOMG...you know what this reminded me of? Brown bread. That wonderful, mysterious bread-in-a-can that adorned many a meal in my childhood. I can't even think of hot dogs and baked beans without thinking of big slabs of brown bread, fried in butter and then smeared with cream cheese. Mmmmm. This bread had that same delicious dark sweetness and crispy texture, minus the rings that came from being molded into a can. I am totally digging the molasses-and-cornmeal combination. There needs to be more of this in my life. Molasses and cornmeal smoothie, perhaps?

No baking today, though. My hubby and I are running the Rock and Roll Half Marathon in Providence tomorrow, and we spent today getting our gear at the Expo and visiting my parents, who will be watching our son while we run. Wish us luck!

My Son's First Cooking Lesson, Inspired by Mama Pea

I always love seeing an Amazon.com box on my doorstep. Yesterday, I got to witness the actual delivery itself...with gritted teeth, as I watched my mailman shove my watermelon-sized package into my cantaloupe-sized mailbox. *Sigh* At least it was only books and a CD.

The semi-mangled box contained three things I have been eagerly anticipating: Mama Pea's first cookbook, Peas and Thank You: Simple Meatless Meals the Whole Family Will Love; Vanessa Carlton's new CD (finally!!! FINALLY!!!), Rabbits on the Run; and Kristen Suzanne's Easy Raw Vegan Soups cookbook. Squee!

I immediately threw Vanessa's CD into my laptop and got it cranking while I started perusing Mama Pea's cookbook. I just love Mama Pea. I love her style and reading all about her two adorable and funny little girls, Gigi and Lulu. I showed their pictures to my son, and he declared that they were both pretty, but he was especially partial to 3-year-old Lulu :) Anyway, Mama Pea is always cooking with her girls, and it got me thinking that it was really time to start cooking with my boy. He's only 2, but he loves to help and he has lots of enthusiasm. I figured he'd be game to start his first cooking lesson.

What to make was actually a very easy decision - I wanted to make some healthy snacks for my son, so I decided we'd make two things out of Dreena Burton's second cookbook, Vive Le Vegan! I'd already made both recipes before and knew that they were not only tasty and nutritious (and toddler-approved), but also really easy to make.

First up was the Apple-Hemp Muffins:

These are wholesome, whole-grain muffins sweetened with maple syrup, cinnamon, cardamom, and applesauce. They also contain my favorite little nonpsychoactive plant, hemp. The USA is the largest importer of hemp products, and yet, it cannot be (legally) grown here. Put that in your pipe and smoke it. Tee hee.

But really, the muffins were just a warm-up for the main event...the Energy Cookies.

These are so delicious, it almost seems wrong to call them healthy. When people hear "healthy cookie," they probably think of those Snackwell's cookies that taste like *$!#%^&. These actually taste GOOD. For realz. They are called Energy Cookies because they are loaded with good-for-you-stuff like sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, raisins, carob chips, flax meal, maple syrup, and blackstrap molasses. Yes, even carob, maple syrup, and blackstrap molasses have nutrition - carob contains protein, B vitamins, calcium, and iron; maple syrup contains zinc and manganese; and blackstrap molasses is loaded with calcium and iron. All three contain more than what I listed, but these are just a few examples. Reach for these natural sweeteners and throw out the Splenda!

I wish I could say I got pictures of my son stirring the cookie batter, but let me just say, it was a struggle to keep the cookie batter in the bowl and not in my son's mouth.

Here are the cookies and muffins, chillin' out on the cooling racks.

My son was very proud of his first cooking effort, and so was I. The cookies and muffins were delicious, and he's ready to take on his next cooking challenge. I will be, too, once I finish cleaning up :)

Real Food...Yes!

I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it feels to be feeling better. More importantly, I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it feels to be EATING again! I've had more than enough dry toast, brown rice pasta, and rice crackers to last a lifetime. Unfortunately, although yesterday was the first day I began to feel human again, my poor hubby woke up this morning feeling ill. Oh, sickness...the gift that keeps on giving! At least my little monkey boy is feeling well, *cross my fingers**!!

So, last night, while all 3 of us were feeling good, we had a fun little meze-style dinner, highlighted by the Shabby Sheik Hummus out of Appetite for Reduction. If you don't make your own hummus, you really should. It is so easy to do and it tastes so much better than store-bought...AND it is insanely cheaper, too. This version of hummus is flavored with cumin, smoked paprika, and some cayenne pepper. I substituted chili powder because my tummy no-likey cayenne :) I also cooked up some millet and pan-grilled some eggplant, zucchini, and yellow squash. I sliced up the veggies and marinated them in some Italian dressing for a few hours. I was going to grill them outside, but then I got lazy and decided to just pan-grill them instead. I found that putting a heavy cast-iron weight on top of the veggies helped them cook faster and get those nifty grill marks.

Finally, I assembled our plates: some millet, some grilled veggies, a little hummus, some mini whole-wheat pitas, and some raw baby carrots and cucumbers.

You could change up your veggies, or roast them, or try some other kind of dip, like baba ganoush or some tapenade. I liked the balance of flavors, textures, and nutrients this meal offered. I should really dig out my copy of Olive Trees & Honey and get some more meze inspiration! This was a fun meal that would be great for company.

Aargh for Me....But Yummy for Them

It's Day Six of my self-imposed Bland Food Fest. Toast, rice, bananas, graham crackers. I'm getting a bit depressed over it. I mean, I love food. I love to eat. I don't love feeling like this. I also miss exercising. I look out my window and see people running and I want to throw something at them. Like maybe one of my innumerable bowls of rice. I finally broke down and called the doctor's office this morning, but there were no openings today, so I have to wait until Monday to be seen. Hopefully, whatever is ailing me will be gone by then. I'm starting to think something moved into my belly and has taken up residence there. Some kind of mad, rice-eating punk who hates running or something.

But alas, just because I can't eat anything, it doesn't mean I should deprive my dear hubby and son of food. Since it is also Day Sixteen of my self-imposed I'm-Not-Going-to-the-Grocery-Store-if-I-Can-Help-It project, I had to come up with another pantry-and-freezer-friendly meal. I browsed through a bunch of recipes I'd saved to my computer and realized I'd hit the jackpot when I came across the Tempeh Tamale Pie recipe from Mama Pea's awesome and pea-lightful blog. My hubby and son both love beans, tempeh, corn, and cornbread. I think we have a winner!

Tempeh, onions, garlic, pinto beans, spices, and some zucchini (my addition) were sauteed and simmered together, then placed in a casserole dish. You top this with a quick homemade cornbread batter  studded with frozen corn kernels. Finally, a light sprinkling of Daiya vegan cheddar cheese goes on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes, and voila, dinner is served.

I threw some frozen green beans on the stove to steam while the casserole baked. I am pleased as punch to say that both hubby and son ate it up with gusto. I can't wait to actually try it myself some day (soon...I hope!!)

Lentils and (Lots of) Rice

So.....not a lot of posts this week. I have been feeling sick (in some way, shape, or form) for the last 5 days. One day it was vomiting, another day it was...something else, every day it's been a headache and nausea, and every night has been poor sleep. You could say I'm not feeling my best :) As such, the meals I've been making have been simple - rice and tempeh, grilled cheez, quinoa salad. I've been cooking for my hubby and son because, thankfully, they both feel fine and want to subsist on more than just liquids and rice (unlike me). My stomach is not even letting me enjoy my beloved smoothies. In fact, the only thing I've been able to tolerate is rice...brown rice pasta, rice crackers, plain ole brown rice, etc. I decided to make some more rice tonight for myself and also make something more substantial for the boys.

When you haven't been to the grocery store in a week, and you're feeling pretty tired, Enjedra is your friend. Enjedra is a variation of mujaddara, a Middle Eastern dish of spiced lentils, rice, and caramelized onions. Really, it's just lentils, onions, cumin, and salt. Let them simmer together for an hour or so until it gets all fragrant and soft and squishy. Serve on top of some brown rice, and top it off with some frozen collard greens. A well-balanced, hearty, nutritious meal that costs about $2 and takes a minimum of effort.

Bonus? The lentils and rice are really sticky and easy for a toddler to spoon up. They're also really good at hiding the collard greens you just know he likes but pretends not to :)

This is a great pantry meal when you have nothing else to make, or when you're just too doggone tired to make anything involving a lot of chopping, stirring, or fussing. You get your proteins, carbs, fiber, greens, and lots of A and B vitamins. Much better than calling for take-out!

Dill-licious Raw Green Soup

There is nothing better than making something out of nothing. Witness last night's dinner...I had some sad-looking baby spinach, a few pieces of lacinato kale, some huge zucchini my mother-in-law gave me, a few scallions, an overripe avocado, and a huge bunch of fresh dill leftover from the prior night's Tofu Dill Salad Sammiches. What I didn't have was a plan for dinner. All I knew is that I didn't feel like making salad, and I wanted something cool.

Then I had my a-ha moment: back in my pregan (that's pre-vegan) days, my hubby and I used to love a zucchini quiche that I made out of Better Homes and Gardens magazine. This quiche is amazing...but definitely not vegan! But I realized that I had virtually everything I would need to turn that quiche into a raw soup!

I quickly got to work....some chopped zucchini, the spinach and kale, some scallions, an avocado, some dill, some nooch, some water, and some spices were tossed into my Vita-Mix. I blended it up, drizzled in some EVOO, and took a taste. It was incredible...and the flavors were very much like I'd remembered! I decided to put it to the ultimate taste-test: I didn't mention what I had made to my hubby. I poured him a bowl of soup, topped it with some diced tomatoes, dill, and a pinch of garlic salt, and asked him to take a bite. He took a bite, paused, and then said something that was music to my ears:

"It tastes like that zucchini quiche you used to make!!"

SCORE!!

Course, genius that I am, I did NOT write down my measurements as I was going along. I tried my best to remember what I'd done, and so here it is!

Dill-licious Raw Green Soup
Serves 4 with a side dish

Soup:
2 extra-large zucchini, chopped
2 cups raw greens (I used baby spinach and lacinato kale)
3 stalks scallions, chopped
1 avocado
1 cup fresh dill
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 cup (or more) water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Topping:
1 large Roma tomato, diced
few sprigs fresh dill, for garnish

Blend soup ingredients on high until fairly smooth, then go to low and drizzle in 1 tablespoon EVOO. Return to high and blend 1 minute until smooth.

Pour into bowls and top with Roma tomato, fresh dill, and sprinkle of garlic salt.

I served the soup with some roasted cauliflower that I tossed with some dried herbs and nooch.

I love how GREEN this soup is! Zucchini, scallions, spinach, kale, avocado, dill. That's some serious green power!

Tofu Dill Salad Sammiches and a Smoothie Recipe

When I'm in a cooking rut, or an I-just-don't-feel-like-cooking kind of funk, I look for quick and easy recipes. I mean, you gotta eat, right? But even when I'm not feeling inspired in the kitchen, I'm still too stubborn (and cheap) to call for take-out. Besides, being vegan in a small town, it's not like there are a ton of take-out options for me. I don't exactly get psyched about spending $20 on a take-out pizza that has no cheese on it. It also seems like when I ask for no cheese, they also take it to mean no toppings, too. I mean, throw a vegan girl a bone, would ya? I'm saving you the cost of the cheese, so could ya pleaaase put some more veggies on there so I don't starve? Thank you.

Okay, enough about that. So, yesterday, I didn't feel like cooking. Enter the most perfect, quick, no-cooking-and-very-minimal-chopping-type-recipe I could think of: Tofu Dill Salad Sammiches from Vegan with a Vengeance.

VWAV is Isa Chandra Moskowitz's first cookbook, and I'd be willing to bet it's in almost every vegan's kitchen. VWAV is legendary! And this sandwich is one of my faves from the book. It's so easy to make, and it's rescued me on many a nights when I just didn't feel like cooking. It's simply tofu, fresh dill, red onion, apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, vegan mayo, and salt & pepper, all mashed together. I served it on some oatmeal bread with some sliced Roma tomatoes and baby spinach.

We had some tater tots, baby carrots, and cucumber sticks on the side, along with our favorite dips: organic ketchup for the tots, and Grey Poupon for the veggies. I'm positively addicted to veggies dipped in GP!

Earlier in the day, I decided to make a spin on my Pumpkin Pie Smoothie, using actual pumpkin this time. I had a bunch of leftover canned pumpkin in my fridge, and I didn't want it to go to waste! I made a simplified version of my usual smoothie, and it came out quite delicious! There are no measurements (other than the coconut milk) because I just dumped stuff into the blender, so feel free to go with your instincts here!

Pumpkin Pie a la Mode Smoothie 
Makes 1 large serving / 2 small servings

1 1/2 cups coconut milk (I used So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk)
1 large frozen banana
canned pumpkin (I probably used about 1 1/4 cups?)
few shakes of cinnamon
quick shake of nutmeg
Sweetener, to taste (I used about 1 teaspoon of maple-flavored agave syrup and a about 1/2 teaspoon of blackstrap molasses)
5-6 ice cubes

Blend on high until smooth and creamy!

I found this version to be a bit thicker and creamier than my usual version. I might even like this version better!