Is with a perfect picnic on a perfect day in a perfect park.
For my picnic today I made a special fruit salad. Inspired by a post I browsed over on Pinterest of a strawberry, grape, and blueberry salad I went outside the box and substituted a couple tropical fruits (pineapple and mango). Then I went ahead and made the glaze that was included. It is so easy you could probably do it blindfolded.
Ready for it?.........
1/3 cup honey
Juice of 2 limes
zest of 1 lime
*mix to thin and pour over your choice of fruit*
note: I recommend sticking to 3 or 4 different types of fruit
In light of my week of only fruit (cough cough) I shared this delicious salad with a friend and he enjoyed it!
Ok, everyone has a weakness. Mine are cookies. There are so many varieties and they can be "healthy" or unhealthy and chocolaty, lemony, or sugary. The possibilities are endless. With that said I didn't exactly follow through with my "no sweets for a week" vow. I tried but I just caved. Look how delicious they are! You can't expect me to stand there for nine hours and not want at least one. Let's be realistic.
Feel free to share any delicious cookie recipes you might have up your sleeve
This blog is the bees knees; especially for all you vegans out there. Every time she posts something new I am like "I am allowed to eat that?".
Katie's down-to-earth attitude really keeps you clicking for more zesty recipes and ideas. She definitely makes being vegan appear to be more flavorful and fulfilling than we newbies (or have-not-yet's) can imagine. Her charm and wit keep her reader's laughing, and laughing is surely the best medicine out there.
What really caught my eyes were her kitchen basics because if your vegan you miss out on a lot of the good stuff (which is why I am not quite there yet). Here is a recipe for vegan butter that hits on all sixes! Homemade Vegan Butter
Check out her entire blog here and follow her on Pinterest!
It has been scientifically proven that having "ready to eat" fruits and vegetables helps you lose weight and maintain a healthier diet, because when you reach for something to snack on those products are easy to reach for and quick to eat. All is takes is a little produce preparation!
Food Prep
Take one day or evening to slice your fruits and vegetables and make them "ready to eat". Transitions through time have shown that meal prep increases the likelihood of healthier eating habits.
Cheaper By The Dozen
As much as I encourage trying new restaurants and food hubs; preparing you own food is an important part of maintaining your relationship with fruits and vegetables. Plus, in the long run it saves you money. Sometimes I get lazy and buy a small container of fruit when I am grocery shopping. It cost me $2 to $3 depending on the weight; but I could get twice the amount in the produce section for approximately the same price.
Fridge Nightmare
Before you spree to the grocery store take a quick glance at your fridge and see what you already have that could be used now and what you need to toss. Not only is it just disgusting, but keeping bad food in your fridge can make all the other food go bad faster because of the mold (once it starts it doesn't stop).
Containers Galore
If your bottom cupboard looks like mine it is filled with containers of all sizes that I hardly ever use and fall out every time I open the door. Always having pre-cut, and pre-washed fruits and vegetables on hand is the best way to utilize these and will make your refrigerator look like the emerald city of Tupperware.
Chop, Chop, Chop
Now its time for some fun! Have your biggest cutting board out, sharpest knife, and a wet cloth to wipe off the knife and cutting board. have all the plastic containers out before you start slicing and dicing to keep everything organized. I watched a few videos online for the best way to cut everyday vegetables and I ended up liking this good old fashioned Betty Crocker on. It is based around stir fry vegetables but whether these cuts are eaten fresh or cooked they are beautiful!
So now you have the basics to produce some ready to eat produce! (pun intended)
1. If making hummus wasn't sexy already.....it is now
Not only is hummus a great source of vitamins and minerals, but it also is an excellent source of protein as well as carbohydrates for all you hard core athletes. Just a 4 ounce serving can give you about 9 grams of protein (and who eats just four ounces?) ;)
2. GO NUTS!
Everyone knows that nuts are a great source of protein. They can be put in salads, eaten whole as a snack, or even blended into a smoothie! There are so many options that your bound to find one you like. So go ahead; don't be shy to go nuts.
3. Cheeses! (Everything is "betta with feta")
Feta seems to be the new "it" cheese so I thought it was only appropriate that I give it a little more credit. Just two ounces on a salad or on pizza can give you roughly 8 grams of protein and with all those low cal veggies you don't have to sweat about the feta (75 cal). I know it seems like a lot but if your getting your protein than its a fare compromise.
4. Is there an APricot for that?
I had no idea that some fruits were such a good source of protein. I eat so much fruit because I have the biggest sweet tooth but I know that refined sugars are not good for my body or pearly whites.
Apricots are one of the best fruits that happen to contain almost 3 grams of protein per cup. They are delicious fresh from the farmers market on a hot summer day, or dried for a midday snack!
5. Pass the peas, please!
Split pea soup is absolutely delicious. Who knew that just one cup of split peas contains about 50 grams of protein! There you have it; your set for the entire day. This is great for those cold winter nights with a slice of warm garlic bread. Dinner is served my friends.
I was so hungry I forgot to take a picture before I dove in!
Sorry for the not so perfect picture. I love Thai food so much! It has always been my go to and even more now that I am on the search for meat free options.
My best friend and I went to this place that is just around the corner from our culinary school.
We both loved the cozy atmosphere and steady service. All of the waitresses were there when you needed one.
I don't think I have ever had bad Thai food; you simply can't go wrong with this cuisine.
Tasty Thai
What is left of my dish is the Pra Ram with tofu. I am still getting used to tofu and so far have only had it at Thai places with the sweet peanut sauce (my fav!). I liked how thick and rich the sauce was at this place but the dish as a whole could benefit from a couple stars of spice. The side of brown rice was also cooked perfectly and had just enough flavor to complement the overall dish.
The vegetarian won tons were just how you picture them: crispy on the outside and well cooked on the inside. The Price You Pay
With their lunch special my entire meal was $9 which included the three fried vegetarian won tons. As a student at OCI , they gave me one dollar off so for a total of $8 I enough food for probably two people depending on how hungry you are!
"It is almost as if people are ignorant of what is underneath all of the fried batter", I think to myself as I watch people walk past me in the mall with heaps of chicken and noodles drowning in a sauce that is probably packed full of sugar. My mom's ex husband always said people were like zombies and needed to "wake-up" to the realities of how government is controlling society. Possibly or not possibly conspiracy theories but the overall lesson of learning to question everything and know the facts has made my post-youth life experiences much more valuable.
I work in the food court of an unpredictably crowded mall at a bakery/cafe. Compared to our surrounding competitors and their fried foods (mostly meat options) we offer a more fresh variety of salads, soups, and sandwiches which all have meatless options or the option to be meatless. Being in Portland, Oregon I get all kinds of customers asking where they can find a vegetarian or vegan option. Fortunately, I don't have to turn down their plead for something that caters to their diet.
This brings me to the biggest nightmare of all in the food court. For those of us who have to face its fear on a weekly basis, there is not enough fruit and vegetable options! There are hundreds of employees in the mall and a lot of them obviously depend on the food court for their lunch and personally tomatoes and cucumbers can get pretty boring after a four day work stretch.
This reality is not confined to the mall, however. Consider airports as probably the best example. Someone who is visiting America for the first time gets off the plane to view the "land of the free, home of the brave". They are probably hungry and want some food and see the sign for the food court. Now we are all aware that America is definitely not known for any type of "grand cuisine"; but what visitors are faced with when they enter the space full of Americanized Asian food and hamburgers with fake cheese made from who - knows - what. So it is easy to see how a vegetarian diet could be lost in this mix.
My proposed solution:
Many fast food restaurants have jumped on the vegetarian/vegan bandwagon and offer at least one meal on their menu that is friendly to this diet. Food court venues, however, tend to be privately owned companies that haven't quite grasped the new health trends. If they don't have a decent menu item that caters to this growing phenomena then they will constantly be turning down valuable customer. Once owners realize how much service they are losing they will be forced to put something vegetarian friendly on their menu and then we can support their movement and encourage others to try out the meat free dish.
