What do you eat anyway?
A few people have asked what we eat on a daily basis. I don't eat cholesterol, so that takes out almost all animal products: dairy, egg yolks, meat, cheese, etc. That makes us almost vegan. "Almost" because I still eat egg whites on occasion and don't mind the tiny amount of butterfat or whatever in dark chocolate (if it says "0 mg" of cholesterol, that's good enough for me). So for those that are curious, here is what we ate last week...
Monday: Baked potato and vegan chili
Saute onions in olive oil. Add vegan "hamburger" crumbles (we use Morningstar brand and, amazingly, Scott and Bruce actually really like this stuff) and cook for a few minutes. Add a can of black beans, a little taco seasoning, a can of garbanzo beans, a bit of frozen corn, a little frozen butternut squash and a big can of diced tomatoes. Simmer for a half-hour. Serve with baked potato.
Tuesday: Soba Noodle Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing and Shredded Fingernail
6 oz soba noddles (I used plain Chinese noodles since that was what was in my cupboard at the time)
1/2 c peanut butter (I used a combo of peanut butter and almond butter because I had a jar of almond butter with a few tablespoons left that's been sitting in the fridge for way too long)
1/4 c brown rice vinegar
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp fresh minced ginger (this is where I added the freshly minced fingernail too. you can leave that out in your recipe if you wish)
2 tsp soy sauce (I used some random stir fry sauce in the fridge that had soy sauce as the main ingredient. time to get soy sauce at the store)
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 Tbsp lime juice (I used lemon juice because that's what was in my fridge)
1 tsp lime juice (again, no limes in the house. so I used orange rind. it's amazing this recipe came out tasting so good since I substituted pretty much everything)
1/2 c cilantro, divided
1 cucumber, sliced and diced
1 red bell pepper, sliced into little slivers
1 large carrot, grated
2 Tbsp chopped peanuts (pulled these out of trail mix, so they had a raisin-y taste)
Cook the noodles up. Put a bunch of stuff in the food processor - from the peanut butter to cilantro. Then toss it with the noodles and everything except the peanuts; sprinkle those, along with some extra cilantro for garnish, on top.
Wednesday: Whatever-Is-In-The-Fridge Pizza
Wednesday was a busy day, so I needed to make something quick. I keep a few pizza crusts in the freezer from times when I make too much bread dough, so I grabbed one and dressed it with whatever was nearly rotting in the fridge: red sauce, mozzarella cheese on one side and soy cheese on the other (the Trader Joe's mozzarella soy cheese is the lesser of the many evils - I miss real cheese), fresh basil, kalamata olives, sliced plum tomatoes, dried oregano, diced red onions and red peppers, and sauteed mushrooms.
Thursday: Fajitas
I had some sauteed mushrooms, red peppers, and onions left over from making pizza the night before. So I added some of that Morningstar fake meat crumble stuff and some taco seasoning. Then I put out a bowl of black beans, a bowl of cheddar cheese, a slice of soy cheese for me, a bowl of lettuce and tomatoes, some salsa, and a sliced avocado along with a stack of warmed tortillas. Another quick, yummy dinner.
Friday: Indian Food that I didn't cook
We went out to eat with some friends last Friday. We ordered "the vegetarian special" that had matter paneer (goat cheese and peas in a spicy tomato sauce), daal (spicy lentils), naan (flatbread), some kind of spicy chickpea-cauliflower stuff, and a few kinds of chutneys. Everything tastes good when I don't have to cook it.
Saturday: Pasta and Veggies
Once again, the sauteed mushrooms/onions/peppers came out, this time presented on a bed of ziti and red sauce.
Sunday: Veggies in Thai Red Curry Soup
3 c cauliflower florets
1 c green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 c cremini mushrooms (I used baby bella since the store ran out of cremini), quartered if large
1 x 14 oz can light coconut milk (I ended up putting in too many veggies and then had to add more coconut milk, so I had one can of light and one can of regular super-fatty-tasty coconut milk)
1-2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste (I put in one teaspoon and ran out, so I used a bunch of red curry sauce to try to make up for it, but the batch came out not as spicy as I'd like)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce (once again, used some random stir fry sauce)
1 red bell pepper, sliced into slivers
30 Thai basil leaves
Blanch cauliflower for 4 minutes in pot of boiling, salted water. Remove with strainer and repeat with green beans. Set aside. Heat oil in skillet and cook mushrooms 5-7 minutes, set aside. In wide saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut milk, curry paste, sugar, soy sauce, and 1/2 c water. Add cauliflower, green beans, mushrooms, bell pepper, and half of basil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Garnish with remaining basil.
There it is. A whole week of vegan meals and we didn't even eat tofu. Maybe this week...
Monday: Baked potato and vegan chili
Saute onions in olive oil. Add vegan "hamburger" crumbles (we use Morningstar brand and, amazingly, Scott and Bruce actually really like this stuff) and cook for a few minutes. Add a can of black beans, a little taco seasoning, a can of garbanzo beans, a bit of frozen corn, a little frozen butternut squash and a big can of diced tomatoes. Simmer for a half-hour. Serve with baked potato.
Tuesday: Soba Noodle Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing and Shredded Fingernail
6 oz soba noddles (I used plain Chinese noodles since that was what was in my cupboard at the time)
1/2 c peanut butter (I used a combo of peanut butter and almond butter because I had a jar of almond butter with a few tablespoons left that's been sitting in the fridge for way too long)
1/4 c brown rice vinegar
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp fresh minced ginger (this is where I added the freshly minced fingernail too. you can leave that out in your recipe if you wish)
2 tsp soy sauce (I used some random stir fry sauce in the fridge that had soy sauce as the main ingredient. time to get soy sauce at the store)
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 Tbsp lime juice (I used lemon juice because that's what was in my fridge)
1 tsp lime juice (again, no limes in the house. so I used orange rind. it's amazing this recipe came out tasting so good since I substituted pretty much everything)
1/2 c cilantro, divided
1 cucumber, sliced and diced
1 red bell pepper, sliced into little slivers
1 large carrot, grated
2 Tbsp chopped peanuts (pulled these out of trail mix, so they had a raisin-y taste)
Cook the noodles up. Put a bunch of stuff in the food processor - from the peanut butter to cilantro. Then toss it with the noodles and everything except the peanuts; sprinkle those, along with some extra cilantro for garnish, on top.
Wednesday: Whatever-Is-In-The-Fridge Pizza
Wednesday was a busy day, so I needed to make something quick. I keep a few pizza crusts in the freezer from times when I make too much bread dough, so I grabbed one and dressed it with whatever was nearly rotting in the fridge: red sauce, mozzarella cheese on one side and soy cheese on the other (the Trader Joe's mozzarella soy cheese is the lesser of the many evils - I miss real cheese), fresh basil, kalamata olives, sliced plum tomatoes, dried oregano, diced red onions and red peppers, and sauteed mushrooms.
Thursday: Fajitas
I had some sauteed mushrooms, red peppers, and onions left over from making pizza the night before. So I added some of that Morningstar fake meat crumble stuff and some taco seasoning. Then I put out a bowl of black beans, a bowl of cheddar cheese, a slice of soy cheese for me, a bowl of lettuce and tomatoes, some salsa, and a sliced avocado along with a stack of warmed tortillas. Another quick, yummy dinner.
Friday: Indian Food that I didn't cook
We went out to eat with some friends last Friday. We ordered "the vegetarian special" that had matter paneer (goat cheese and peas in a spicy tomato sauce), daal (spicy lentils), naan (flatbread), some kind of spicy chickpea-cauliflower stuff, and a few kinds of chutneys. Everything tastes good when I don't have to cook it.
Saturday: Pasta and Veggies
Once again, the sauteed mushrooms/onions/peppers came out, this time presented on a bed of ziti and red sauce.
Sunday: Veggies in Thai Red Curry Soup
3 c cauliflower florets
1 c green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 c cremini mushrooms (I used baby bella since the store ran out of cremini), quartered if large
1 x 14 oz can light coconut milk (I ended up putting in too many veggies and then had to add more coconut milk, so I had one can of light and one can of regular super-fatty-tasty coconut milk)
1-2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste (I put in one teaspoon and ran out, so I used a bunch of red curry sauce to try to make up for it, but the batch came out not as spicy as I'd like)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce (once again, used some random stir fry sauce)
1 red bell pepper, sliced into slivers
30 Thai basil leaves
Blanch cauliflower for 4 minutes in pot of boiling, salted water. Remove with strainer and repeat with green beans. Set aside. Heat oil in skillet and cook mushrooms 5-7 minutes, set aside. In wide saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut milk, curry paste, sugar, soy sauce, and 1/2 c water. Add cauliflower, green beans, mushrooms, bell pepper, and half of basil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Garnish with remaining basil.
There it is. A whole week of vegan meals and we didn't even eat tofu. Maybe this week...
posted by Emily at 2:21 PM
4 Comments:
Hey, that reminds me, WE should go out for Indian food. After running or just whenever...let me know!
Mmmmmmm.... sometimes vegetarianism really doesn't sound that bad at all. :)
is there a special reason you skip the cholesterol, like you have a special health condition and your body can't process it?... or is that just a personal food preference?
eisha, it's more of the body can't process it type of thing. genetically wicked-bad cholesterol.
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