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My Seared Ego.

 8.31.2011

You know that feeling you get when you work really hard to be creative and serve a great new dinner recipe?
  When you taste the first bite of a completely home made meal and you are actually surprised at how good it tastes? 
Complete satisfaction.  
Complete Pride.

This new dinner I put together tonight gave me that satisfaction. And naturally, the only thing better than approval from my own overly-critical self is the approval of my better half, the one for whom I created this exquisite meal.  I mean, if not for him, I would have been good with a bowl of vanilla crunch sunrise.

Well, the approval I desperately sought unfortunately never came.  

My enthusiasm died when B finally sat down after finishing the quinoa pasta.  He took a long time to cut that damn steak.  And finally, after a long-awated first bite, I read apathy all over his face. 

He said, hesitantly, eye-brows raised in posed appreciation, "It's really good!"
I hung my head low, then further pried.  I didn't understand why he wasn't more excited.  He went on to explain, knowing he couldn't fool me into believing he was as in love with the meal as I was, that he plain just doesn't like raw fish.  

Forgive me, but I have gone on many a sushi date with this man! 
I was confused.  
I asked him what he meant, and he explained that when we do sake/sushi dates, he always gets the cut rolls and that I am the one who gets the seared ahi each time.  
Crap.  He had a point.
But he didn't stop there; he further tried to soothe my now seared-ego by explaining he didn't finish the other 3/4 of his dinner because his stomach is shrinking from the "healthy eating."

He is probably right.  But still, it sucks.  But I know we all have different tastes.  And sometimes it is hard to please two completely sets of taste buds!  But for those of you who do appreciate a good seared-ahi, the recipe is below! Word to the wise, make sure your special someone also likes fish in the raw :)





Ingredients:

2 tuna steaks, 
1 avocado
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro, 
2 tablespoons of peeled chopped/minced fresh ginger, 
2 garlic cloves, minced, 
2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice, 
1/3 cup Bragg's Liquid Aminos Soy Sauce Substitute, 
1/4 white onion, chopped, 
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 
1 tbsp. Xantham Gum
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

10 minutes to make:

Mix olive oil, Bragg's Liquid Aminos, cilantro and ginger in a bowl.

Heat pan on high for a minute, add 2 tbsp. extra Virgin olive oil, garlic and onion and heat for a minute.
Sprinkle salt and pepper on tuna steaks, then sear for 1 minute on each side, remove, and place tuna on plate.

Add sauce mixture from bowl to pan on stove with the onions and garlic in it that you used to sear the ahi.
Add Xantham gum and mix until sauce thickens.
Top steak with sauce and sliced avocados.



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RESISTing the temptation...


I used to wake up looking forward to Wednesdays.  Why, you wonder?

Because Wednesdays are days the corner break room is freshly stocked with Panera bagels, croissants, scones, cookies, and/or donuts.  And this bounty of beautifully tempting & tasty treats extends throughout the remainder of the week.

Each time I walk to the water cooler, it's like I have to talk to myself into obedience.  I, at times, consider taking just a little bite (ok, if I'm honest, it crosses my mind often).  Somehow I have manage to talk myself out of self-sabotaging by reminding myself that I can never have just one, but not after I give these little sprinkled wonders a good once-over.

Some days are worse than others.  But bypassing the temptation does get slightly easier as time goes on and I have more separation from processed/complex carbs.  The fact that I feel better without them is a nice consolation; however, I sometimes wonder if I will ever forget the euphoria of the first crumbly break of a sprinkled cake donut, or the melted glaze of several donut holes, or the crunch of a freshly toasted everything bagel with melted cream cheese dripping off the edge onto my finger.  Like I said, somedays are harder than others. :)



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Get Juiced!



B and I have been juicing it up every AM! I seriously feel so good when we drink this stuff! The only pain in the a** part is peeling the fruit and cleaning the juicer afterwards.  Our usual juice consists of piece of ginger root, oranges (1-4), apples (1-2), carrots (2-4), red cabbage (1/4 head), and an occasional 1/4-1/2 beet.

Our juicer spits out so much pulp I am convinced to put it to good use.  The only ideas I have had so far though consist of creating my very own organic fruit compost in the backyard.   I'll keep working on that.

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Huevos + Juice: Ring the Alarm!

 8.30.2011






Try this healthy breakfast! Corn Tortillas smothered with scrambled eggs (2 yolks to 4 egg whites), avocado slices, chopped onion, Soy Cheese, Salsa,  sprinkled with a bit of cilantro! I would have added soy chorizo, but I forgot I had put it in the freezer, so next time. :)

I also thought of adding black beans, but I needed to whip up breakfast in a jiffy so I opted out...

My sister in law knows how to cook tortillas on a stove top practically in her sleep.  She handles that stovetop like Sir-Mix-Alot.  I have to become her understudy ASAP; well that, or purchase myself a nice big, accessible fire extinguisher because I now have third degree burns on my phalanges and nearly lost all of my hot air blowing out a small fire.

Which only reminds me of good times, when we were kids and would bug my mom about when dinner would be ready.  My mom would reassure us, "You'll know when dinner is ready when you hear the fire alarm; come and get it while its hot!"

It was either the alarm or the cow bell which lead us to the table!



Every time I attempt to warm a tortilla on my stove, I have grand visions walking past the windows of the ladies making the fresh tortillas in Old Town San Diego.  It never turns out anything like my memory.  But I digress, maybe I need to get one of those grills with the holes in it? Does anyone know what that is?


To wash down the Huevos Semi-Rancheros - a nice freshly juiced cocktail full of:
Cabbage
Orange
Apples
Beet
and Ginger!

Get your AM drank on!

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Bird Seed Dinner, Party of ONE

 8.28.2011



Last week, when B was out golfing late with the boys from the office,  I was left to my own devices for dinner.  Usually that means, nibble here, snack there, until I am full, but I usually never feel like dirtying dishes for one.  But it got to be 9:20pm and I still was not that hungry.  I just felt like I should still make something.

I juiced this morning with B, a nice apple, orange, cabbage, ginger medley, and had some crunchy flax cereal that B set aside with a morbid look on his face and pouted, "I can't eat that crap."  I knew I should have got some Gorilla Munch.  Oh well, next time I am at Mother's I will pick up some Vanilla Crunch Flax Cereal.  

Anyway, I had an apple with peanut butter for lunch, and snacked on some dried apple rings, raw cashews and plantain crisps in the afternoon.  It's not like I even ate full meals - which is why I am beginning to believe that this whole gluten free, sugar free, drinking water instead of soda, and eating organic and trying to be 80% raw is actually working for my body quite well.

Halfway through my salad, I almost spit out my lime Perrier all over the dining room table.  Excuse my manners, but I spotted a hair in my food; one from my very own, freshly washed, still wet mane.  I thought to myself, exactly what kind of Grade C establishment am I running in my kitchen?

I should have been okay with it, but I was overly grossed out.  I pushed a pile of romaine over it (I can't even type the word "ha**as I am writing this because I am still disturbed) and tried to block it out of my mind.  Why is our own hair so repulsive? Some strangers hair? OK - that is grounds for an upheaval.  But your own hair?  Still. Not. Okay. 

I ended up making a vegetable saute, cooked quinoa (or bird seed as B calls it) with chopped onion and a garlic clove ...and salad with leftover guacamole and olive oil, apple cider vinegar and balsamic dressing.  Topped with soy mozzarella cheese.

I sprinkled a bit of Bragg Soy Protein below on top of the quinoa for taste.

I am only beginning to see the multiple uses for BRAGG products.

I will help you out though, take notes: DO NOT DRINK Apple Cider Vinegar straight from the bottle.

It tastes like - it tastes like....I don't even know, just don't drink it.

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Gluten Free, Sugar Free, HomeMade Guacamole Tacos




B and I were actually surprised how good this dinner was! I had my meal sans tacos, but the above tacos are in fact GF tortillas.

Top with kidney and black beans, homemade guacamole (two avocados, 1/4 chopped onion, 1/4 c. salsa, few pinches of sea salt, and a squeeze of fresh lime) and top with shredded soy mozzarella cheese!

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Phood Phetish!



Phood on Main is one of my all-time favorite eateries in Riverside.

Last time I visited Riverside I had lunch with a good friend of mine at Phood.  Not only are they Vegan and GF friendly, they have the most amazing tasting entrees and desserts.

Naturally, I couldn't resist a Red Velvet Gluten Free cupcake. I spoke with Chef Maria Cohen about the gluten free options, and she said everything on the menu is pretty much gluten free and that it would be easier for her to tell me what was NOT gluten free than what IS...there are only a few items on their entire menu that are not gluten free!



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S'More Erotica...Disclaimer: For True Sugar Lovers Only!

 8.25.2011

There's nothing wrong with fantasizing about dessert, right? Browsing foodie blogs in my not-so-spare time, I find myself yearning for the days of consuming mass amounts of ooey-gooey morsels such as the S'mores pudding served in a schooner I once enjoyed in my not-to-distant-past over lunch with friends at a side street cafe, Simmzy's in Manhattan Beach. 

This trip down memory lane inspired me to share s'more of my top 5 confectionary erotica: 

First, for a nearly identical S'Mores Pudding recipe (pictured above) from Annie's Eats click here



 Sunset Magazine's Grown-up S'mores Sandwiches starts off the tantalizing list.
 


 Baking Addiction's cupcakes knows how to tip me off the wagon...

 S'Mores Cupcake Ice Cream Sandwiches.

 Annie sure knows her S'Mores.  Recipe here.
For those of you wanting more than a cupcake, see Annie's Eat's S'Mores Cake Recipe here.












Bakerella give's Annie a run for her money with these S'Mores Cupcakes.

Whether my longing for all things saccharine is healthy or not, I consider my day dreams and Pavlovian salivary reaction to photos like this simply a stage in my grieving process since my recent separation from all things sugar.

The only thing that keeps me going is the genius invention of Stevia.  Thank GOD for that leaf!

















Check out 6 new S'mores recipes here!

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Peanut Butter Pie for Mikey- A Must Read!


Peanut Butter Pie for Mikey from Todd Porter & Diane Cu on Vimeo.

I ran across this video created by White on Rice Couple the other day.  Not only is it beautiful, but the tragic reality behind the creation of this video evokes raw, true, introspection and evaluation of how we live our own lives each day.  These may be strangers, but when live brings pain and suffering like this to a fellow human being, you can't help but get emotional and empathize with their hurt.  I shared this story with B last night, held him tight, and told him I never wanted a day to go by where he did not know how much I am in love with him.

Mikey, a fellow food blogger husband, died of a heart attack suddenly and without warning about a week and a half ago.  Her posts since this life-altering tragedy are inspiration to us all, not only to always pursue our dreams, but to live like each day may be our last, and never letting loved ones whom are closest to us go a day without feeling loved.  My deepest and sincerest condolences go out to Jenny, her family, and Mikey's family and friends. 

You can read posts about Mikey on Jenny's blog here.

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Bye Bye Fro Yo

 8.24.2011

I walked past this disturbing sight outside of our local favorite past-time and felt a little bit better about not only saving $50-60 per month on Yogurtland dates.  This also made me slightly repulsed (this post is not intended to have the same effect on all readers).  But for sugar addicts like myself, anything that decreases (however slight) the exorbitant desire within me for sugar is another step forward!

On another note, Juicing fresh Orange, apple, carrot, ginger, and red cabbage is a nice sweet treat OR  if I don't feel like tacking the mound of dishes that accrues daily, I will opt for a easier clean-up option such as:

Perky's crunchy flax cereal with Hemp/Rice/Coconut Milk are my new post-dinner snacks (Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Wheat Free, sugar free, not 100% raw though, but still a decent snack!)

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Fancy Vitamin Drink!

 8.22.2011





I have to wonder, how exactly do I know the vitamins allegedly housed in the cap of this bottle are actually legit?
Weird, but cool.  Has anyone tried this before? It was the first time I had seen it, the taste is actually pretty good.  But to be real, I struggled with the dang cap for like 5 minutes before I figured out how the stupid thing worked.  By the time I got it open, I was almost over it.

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New to Juicing

This is my beautiful friend whom I will refer to as "K," who also has a blog called Journey to Conquer, where you can read about her story here.  

She has inspired me through my gluten free conversion as I see her improving her health through her journey of juicing, cleansing, eating 80% RAW, dairy free, sugar free, alcohol free....and I have to admit, I have been reticent to get on board with her system due to plain old stubborn habits and a general selfish unwillingness to fully commit.  I struggle, as any woman I think does, with cutting out sugar and soda, so I rationalize sugar free dark chocolates, diet sodas, gluten free cupcakes - when in reality - those foods are not doing me any good.

K knows me, and she also knows from experience how juicing has helped her.  And sometimes when you don't want to hear the truth, you need a good pep-talk from your true friends who will tell it to you like is, no sugar-coating (pun intended).   And that is exactly what K did - she told me this past weekend that if I was going to really give this holistic health thing a go, I need to commit, not half-a** it like I feel I have been doing.

And what I mean by that is I have been slowly converting to purchasing organic fruits, adding supplements like Krill oil and Probiotics, cutting out gluten, trimming back soda and candy...and to give myself some credit- these are good changes!

But if I am honest with myself...I have not made the full on conversion, because IT IS NOT FUN!  What else is not fun, however, is waking up feeling like you got hit by a big rig, or someone replaced your 28 year old bones with a geriatric skeleton.  See, I have been operating on caffeine since law school, and placating aches and pains from an old high school volleyball injury with NSAIDS (Non Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs).  And, I have this bull-like drive within me that I will keep pushing and running on nothing but adrenaline until I drop.

Switching from artificial stimulants that exist in altered foods and drinks (read: Monster energy) to obtaining all natural energy from live fruit, minerals, vitamins and enzymes is a full-blown culture shock for my cells.  I was slowly sampling juice blends from Robek's or Mother's as I would grocery shop, or replace a lunch or breakfast here and there with an all-fruit smoothie, but I started to wonder, how much good can those antioxidant and nutrient boosts do me if I am not 100% consistent?

I figured now is as good a time as any to jump into juicing - So I trekked to Costco and purchased our very first Home Juicer! (see below).  B and I read all about it and watched the introductory video, and juiced our first oranges last night! Then I made my first juice cocktail with an apple, ginger root, an orange, and two carrots, poured over ice because I enjoy cold juice much more than room temp - it was fantastic.  I am excited and hopeful for my body to start feeling the effects of juicing.  And though 80% Raw is not exactly convenient or cheap to implement, I am giving it a shot.  80% raw means most food comes from pure organic raw ingredients, as you find them in nature, in their original state. (i.e. NON processed)

The other 20% comes from the occasional cooked Quinoa, meats such as chicken, turkey, steak and fish.  I also spread Valencia Peanut Butter with Flax Seeds over sprouted grain bread (not gluten free, I will switch to Udi's when I run out of the Ezekiel bread in my fridge)...the point is, you have to make it work for you, but be honest with yourself and give it a good shot.  I will be updating and reporting on how the progress is coming along!





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Snack Fav's



Snacking can be hard, whether you are trying to eat healthier, gluten-free, sugar-free, organic, or whatever your health needs are.  But the above snacks are always on-hand in the cupboard or at my desk for when I am hungry and need a hold-over until the next meal.


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Pink chicken :( and sweet potatoes :)

 The other night, B made some sweet potatoes, cooked on the grill with diced onions and seasoning.  They were delicious and very filling.  We were talking about how we both do NOT like yams - you know the dish your crazy aunt always brings with the marshmallows melted on top? But then, it doesn't follow that we both liked the sweet potatoes.  Weird. 

Sweet potatoes, though they contain more vitamins and nutrients, aren't exactly the picture perfect vegetable of health.  Much like Corn.  Those vegetables like to take on the appearance of "fitting in" with the cool veggies, packed with vitamins and minerals and enzymes.  But the glycemic index on potatoes and corn is high, and they really are more of a carbohydrate posing as a vegetable. 

On another note: Does anyone else notice that ORGANIC chicken is tough once cooked? Chewy...and kind of a strange pink color? (not in an uncooked kind of way - it's almost too cooked, yet still a tinge of pink?)

Had to put this in, my happy hubby.  Notice the green lid to the Sriracha bottle on the bottom right corner? Ha.  Cracks me up.

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