After getting home late tonight and realizing that I wasn't quite ready to sit down with the novel Lisa is having me read (Nora Roberts' The Search), I decided to try my hand at challah, a traditional Jewish braided loaf that I'd seen beautiful photographs of in my Williams-Sonoma cookbook but hadn't had time time or guts to try yet.
The idea of a braided loaf begins with manna, a sweet honey-like food thought to have dropped from the heavens as a gift from God to the Iraelites after returning to Egypt after 40 years of exodus. As such, Sabbath and holiday meals in the Jewish tradition begin with the consumption of two complete loaves of bread. The braiding of the bread is characteristic of challah and makes this sweet egg bread instantly recognizable. On Rosh Hashanah, it is sometimes made as a braided circle, symbolizing the completion of another cycle, or year.
Challah is an egg bread, meaning that it is made with a large number of eggs (this recipe called for 2 eggs + 2 yolks), and is sweetened with sugar, honey or molasses (sugar, in this case). It is also brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with sesame seeds, adding to its beautiful brown colouring.
I have been having some major issues with yeast over the last few months. I am sans bread machine and until I can afford it/bribe Santa, sans KitchenAid stand mixer with dough hook. As such, I knead and make bread entirely by hand. To make the task easier and get better results, I went to Tara and got some bread flour (or strong flour, which has a high gluten content, giving bread its characteristic stretch). For some reason unknown to me, I cannot get my bread to leaven properly. I've ruined 3 or 4 different bread recipes using just as many variations on the kneading length (too much kneading can cause the gluten to break down), using fresh yeast packets (I had originally used bulk dry active yeast from Tara and switched to brand new envelopes), using cooler water to proof the yeast, opting out of using sugar to help the yeast along, you name it. I CANNOT get it to go! The bread bakes and tastes ok, but since December I keep baking big ol' bricks of dough that have barely risen, and simply get baked in the interest of time. Some recipes will call for a 12 hour rise, but who has time for that?
Anyhow, so the same problems unfortunately followed me into this recipe. The Joy of Cooking calls for three separate resting periods in which the dough is to rise. I can't imagine that challah, let alone any bread, is meant to be super dense and practically sawed into slices. Nevertheless, the bread tastes amazing and I totally recommend this recipe to anyone who wants to expand his/her bread-making repertoire.
Also, any tips would be GREATLY appreciated.
ps. The recipe used can be found on page 601 of The Joy of Cooking, 75th Edition. Other than the leavening fails, I shortened the second rise to about an hour, and kept it at room temperature.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
108 Salutations
I have changed.
I am strong.
I am gentle.
I am wise.
I am fragile.
I am radiant.
I belong.
I understand.
I collect.
I succeed.
I love.
This morning, I participated in and completed 108 sun salutations at my yoga studio. The number 108 is auspicious in the yoga world for a number of reasons...for example, it is said that there are 108 paths to enlightenment, 108 channels leading into the heart chakra, etc.
For me, this challenge symbolized my physical ability to complete this challenge, but more closely resembles what I can only describe as my annual reset button. After a year of change, challenge and growth, it seemed appropriate to honour and celebrate who I am now and test my strength for the coming year's trials. Every 10 salutations, I set a new intention, as above, and kept an internal mantra, along with steady breathing.
After 40-50 salutations, I came to realize I was only half finished, and I realized this was a tougher undertaking than I originally thought. Around 70, my arms started to give out, and coming down from plank into updog became quite the bicep and shoulder burner. Finally, the last 18 salutations left me feeling energized and powerful, with only the final 3 feeling like a struggle, like my arms might actually snap in two.
I am super proud of myself for having achieved this, and rewarded myself with a big breakfast quinoa scramble (black beans, quinoa, corn, tomatoes, salsa, cilantro, cheese, lime yogurt and a poached egg. yummm!!), more coffee and now, a hot relaxing shower.
I want to wish everyone a fruitful, transformative new year, filled with every joy and lots of smiles :)
Shanti shanti shanti,
Namaste
I am strong.
I am gentle.
I am wise.
I am fragile.
I am radiant.
I belong.
I understand.
I collect.
I succeed.
I love.
This morning, I participated in and completed 108 sun salutations at my yoga studio. The number 108 is auspicious in the yoga world for a number of reasons...for example, it is said that there are 108 paths to enlightenment, 108 channels leading into the heart chakra, etc.
For me, this challenge symbolized my physical ability to complete this challenge, but more closely resembles what I can only describe as my annual reset button. After a year of change, challenge and growth, it seemed appropriate to honour and celebrate who I am now and test my strength for the coming year's trials. Every 10 salutations, I set a new intention, as above, and kept an internal mantra, along with steady breathing.
After 40-50 salutations, I came to realize I was only half finished, and I realized this was a tougher undertaking than I originally thought. Around 70, my arms started to give out, and coming down from plank into updog became quite the bicep and shoulder burner. Finally, the last 18 salutations left me feeling energized and powerful, with only the final 3 feeling like a struggle, like my arms might actually snap in two.
I am super proud of myself for having achieved this, and rewarded myself with a big breakfast quinoa scramble (black beans, quinoa, corn, tomatoes, salsa, cilantro, cheese, lime yogurt and a poached egg. yummm!!), more coffee and now, a hot relaxing shower.
I want to wish everyone a fruitful, transformative new year, filled with every joy and lots of smiles :)
Shanti shanti shanti,
Namaste
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Julie Returns...
I realize it's been over two months since I left this blog hanging, and found myself way too busy (or lazy, whichever you prefer) to copy down the recipes I'd tried and relay them here. A few technical difficulties have manifested themselves as well, namely the sudden death of my camera. I don't feel completely right continuing on writing without sharing photos of the food (aren't 90% of your tastebuds in your eyeballs?), but I will for the time being. We'll see how long I last...
When I last left you, I was a few months into my vegetarianism. I'm glad to report that I am still a vegetarian, and have only indulged in meat a few times: two bites of my mom's creutons, a slice of her Christmas meat lasagna, and a grain-fed free-range chicken breast, all over the break. Not bad. I've been pretty good on my own, still eating fish however. A long discussion with a vegetarian friend of mine a few weeks ago reminded me that I still know nothing about the fishing industry when it comes to food sustainability and manufacturing. It seems I still have some homework to do before I can make an informed decision about consuming fish.
In the meantime, I have expanded my cooking skills, my pantry and my equipment. My grandfather built a spice rack for me, with room for 18 full-sized bottles of my best spices and herbs. I made little labels for each bottle, complete with pencil drawings of the plant or spice as best I could render them. My aunt also got me a second kitchen timer, in the shape of a fat pink piglet. I'm quite pleased with the result; my kitchen finally looks like someone cooks real food in it! My parents got me my very first set of Corningwear for Christmas, as well as a small 3.3L dutch oven. I still plan on cooking bigger dishes in my grandmother's Le Creuset, whose enamel is worn down to the cast iron and which my mother now refuses to cook in. Somehow, even as a biochemist with the knowledge that cooking directly on untreated iron isn't the best idea, I love firing up onions and butter in the very pot that my grandmother and my mother cooked every stew, every pate, every roast and every turkey in for the last 50 years. I can't throw a pot like that away. I am determined to rearrange my bookshelf to find a cozy spot for it, since I will be using it less and less (mom's orders). I still need to fix up my tiny cupboard space to make space for my new pots too!
Along with the Corningwear and my own dutch oven that perhaps my grandchildren will hold onto and covet one day, I also came into possession of the great The Joy of Cooking for the first time this Christmas. It's about time I got myself a copy of this book! Next on my "essentials" cookbooks are works by Julia Child, Martha Stewart and Ina Garten. Perhaps Emeril's cookbook is out there somewhere too. Either way, I've decided that there's no use having this brick of a book on my shelf if I'm not going to use it to its full advantage and actually read it. For those of you who aren't familiar, The Joy of Cooking isn't just a cookbook. It's an instruction manual, an encyclopedia of food. Why give you the recipe for pan-friend chicken and chicken a la king when the book can spend 10 pages explaining what a chicken is, how to break it down, how to best cook each part, and what to serve it with? I have spent many hours already pouring over it, happy to discover that while it contains aspic and souffle and all kinds of challenging recipes, that it also contains recipes for grilled cheese and homemade soda crackers! I can't wait to dive in.
Tomorrow is my prep day for the countdown to New Year's Eve. Like last year, I'm celebrating at a house party here in Kingston along with some of my closest friends, including Lisa and a few buddies from Bands who are making the trip in from out of province and country. I haven't seen many of them in a while, and I've decided to greet them with hot artichoke dip (my first recipe in the new Corningwear!) and bean and cheese quinoa quesadillas, from a quinoa cookbook my mom offered me for Christmas. I went entirely too dressed up last year, with my sparkly flowy top and my false lashes. This year, I've decided on a bottle of wine, jeans and a pretty top, along with a cute ponytail or something. None of the girls from work are back yet, and I have a feeling I'll miss them come midnight on Friday :(
My parents generously gifted Ernie with a nylon cat tunnel as his present, of course made of the same crinkly material as some baby toys. He's also been crying for the last half hour because his momma forgot to pack the cat food from home this morning, and all we have are cans of wet food and cat cookies. Tomorrow morning I head out first thing after a stiff cup of coffee, to get groceries for this week and food for my hungry kitten.
When I last left you, I was a few months into my vegetarianism. I'm glad to report that I am still a vegetarian, and have only indulged in meat a few times: two bites of my mom's creutons, a slice of her Christmas meat lasagna, and a grain-fed free-range chicken breast, all over the break. Not bad. I've been pretty good on my own, still eating fish however. A long discussion with a vegetarian friend of mine a few weeks ago reminded me that I still know nothing about the fishing industry when it comes to food sustainability and manufacturing. It seems I still have some homework to do before I can make an informed decision about consuming fish.
In the meantime, I have expanded my cooking skills, my pantry and my equipment. My grandfather built a spice rack for me, with room for 18 full-sized bottles of my best spices and herbs. I made little labels for each bottle, complete with pencil drawings of the plant or spice as best I could render them. My aunt also got me a second kitchen timer, in the shape of a fat pink piglet. I'm quite pleased with the result; my kitchen finally looks like someone cooks real food in it! My parents got me my very first set of Corningwear for Christmas, as well as a small 3.3L dutch oven. I still plan on cooking bigger dishes in my grandmother's Le Creuset, whose enamel is worn down to the cast iron and which my mother now refuses to cook in. Somehow, even as a biochemist with the knowledge that cooking directly on untreated iron isn't the best idea, I love firing up onions and butter in the very pot that my grandmother and my mother cooked every stew, every pate, every roast and every turkey in for the last 50 years. I can't throw a pot like that away. I am determined to rearrange my bookshelf to find a cozy spot for it, since I will be using it less and less (mom's orders). I still need to fix up my tiny cupboard space to make space for my new pots too!
Along with the Corningwear and my own dutch oven that perhaps my grandchildren will hold onto and covet one day, I also came into possession of the great The Joy of Cooking for the first time this Christmas. It's about time I got myself a copy of this book! Next on my "essentials" cookbooks are works by Julia Child, Martha Stewart and Ina Garten. Perhaps Emeril's cookbook is out there somewhere too. Either way, I've decided that there's no use having this brick of a book on my shelf if I'm not going to use it to its full advantage and actually read it. For those of you who aren't familiar, The Joy of Cooking isn't just a cookbook. It's an instruction manual, an encyclopedia of food. Why give you the recipe for pan-friend chicken and chicken a la king when the book can spend 10 pages explaining what a chicken is, how to break it down, how to best cook each part, and what to serve it with? I have spent many hours already pouring over it, happy to discover that while it contains aspic and souffle and all kinds of challenging recipes, that it also contains recipes for grilled cheese and homemade soda crackers! I can't wait to dive in.
Tomorrow is my prep day for the countdown to New Year's Eve. Like last year, I'm celebrating at a house party here in Kingston along with some of my closest friends, including Lisa and a few buddies from Bands who are making the trip in from out of province and country. I haven't seen many of them in a while, and I've decided to greet them with hot artichoke dip (my first recipe in the new Corningwear!) and bean and cheese quinoa quesadillas, from a quinoa cookbook my mom offered me for Christmas. I went entirely too dressed up last year, with my sparkly flowy top and my false lashes. This year, I've decided on a bottle of wine, jeans and a pretty top, along with a cute ponytail or something. None of the girls from work are back yet, and I have a feeling I'll miss them come midnight on Friday :(
My parents generously gifted Ernie with a nylon cat tunnel as his present, of course made of the same crinkly material as some baby toys. He's also been crying for the last half hour because his momma forgot to pack the cat food from home this morning, and all we have are cans of wet food and cat cookies. Tomorrow morning I head out first thing after a stiff cup of coffee, to get groceries for this week and food for my hungry kitten.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Easy Spinach Soup
Quickly, I just made this after work in under 10 minutes. Healthy, delicious and affordable!
Easy Spinach Soup
I can Campbell's mushroom soup, prepared
1 package baby spinach
While the soup is heating and cooking, steam the spinach. Add about a quarter cup of water to a package of spinach, place in a saucepan with a lid and heat until all the spinach has wilted down.
Using a food processor or Magic Bullet, puree the spinach. Don't throw out the boiling liquid! Throw that into the food processor too to ease the blending process.
Whisk your spinach into the mushroom soup, stir thoroughly and enjoy!
Has great bright green colour and is also great with croutons!
Easy Spinach Soup
I can Campbell's mushroom soup, prepared
1 package baby spinach
While the soup is heating and cooking, steam the spinach. Add about a quarter cup of water to a package of spinach, place in a saucepan with a lid and heat until all the spinach has wilted down.
Using a food processor or Magic Bullet, puree the spinach. Don't throw out the boiling liquid! Throw that into the food processor too to ease the blending process.
Whisk your spinach into the mushroom soup, stir thoroughly and enjoy!
Has great bright green colour and is also great with croutons!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Pumpkins and diamond rings
Before I share this awesome Martha Stewart recipe, can I please say something? Two of my favourite couples in the universe got engaged in the last two weeks! First Smitty and Sarah get engaged while on vacation in Italy, and we all knew they'd end up together, and then Rob pops the question to Michelle on their 1-year anniversary, a wonderful surprise! Sigh. It seems that everyone is either starting exciting new relationships, that older relationships are starting to grow roots, or that weddings are already in the works! I'm a bridesmaid for my friend Laura in August, and two Bands weddings are in the works now! My lovely beautiful friends, you're growing up so fast!
To do my part for the universe, I'm spending my super single Sunday night nursing a 4-day migraine and baking pumpkin cupcakes for my coworkers, staying true to Martha's recipe, circa 2004:
Pumpkin Cupcakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.
Decorate with candy and special Halloween frosting!
Enjoy and congratulations again to all my wonderful engaged friends!
To do my part for the universe, I'm spending my super single Sunday night nursing a 4-day migraine and baking pumpkin cupcakes for my coworkers, staying true to Martha's recipe, circa 2004:
Pumpkin Cupcakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.
Decorate with candy and special Halloween frosting!
Enjoy and congratulations again to all my wonderful engaged friends!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
But why "midnight"?
Hi all,
Here's a recipe I pulled from the Runner's World website. Enjoy!
Shrimp and Tofu Stir Fry
1/2 pound firm to extra-firm tofu, blotted dry
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup mushrooms, stemmed, cleaned, and sliced
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, rinsed, and dried
1/4 cup white wine or sherry
1/2 cup vegetable stock or water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Cut tofu into one-inch cubes. Put one tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. When hot, add mushrooms and cook, stirring, until browned and almost crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon; set aside. Add remaining oil to pan, then the garlic and ginger; cook, stirring, for 10 seconds; add pepper and broccoli and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli turns bright green and softens, about 10 minutes. Add tofu and shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp turns pink, a few minutes. Add wine and stock; cook, stirring, until about half evaporates; return mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring, for a minute to reheat. Add soy sauce; cook, stirring, until veggies becomes glossy, about 30 seconds.
You can also add rice as a carbohydrate base, which I've done in the past. Unfortunately I'm all out of rice, so this will be a nice low-carb alternative. I have a John Orr dress to fit into, yo.
Also, here is the recipe for the sexy chocolate cookies I mentioned a few days ago:
Midnight Chocolate Cookies
1/2 cup butter, room temp
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup flour, sifted
1/3 cup cocao powder, sifted
1/2 tsp baking soda, sifted
Preheat oven to 350degF. Prepare cookie sheets with parchment paper, and non-stick cooking spray.
Beat the butter, sugar, vanilla and egg together until light and fluffy. Sift dry ingredients together and mix thoroughly in a separate bowl. Slowly mix the dry ingredients in with the butter/sugar mixture until it is well-mixed.
With WET hands, make little dough balls no bigger than a walnut or large marble. Place them on the baking sheets, well apart from each other. Bake each batch for exactly 10 minutes. Cool on the baking pan for a few minutes and then until cool completely on baking racks.
Decorating options:
- Melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips or peanut butter chips (or both!) in strong Ziploc bags (seal and soak in warm water until the chips have melted. do NOT microwave Ziploc bags...). Cut a little corner off the bag and pipe chocolate patterns onto the cookies
- Add sprinkles to the chocolate while it's hot if you like.
Hope everyone is having a good week...the holiday Monday totally threw me off and I keep thinking it's Tuesday for some reason. I'm at home today all day for the first time in a while, since I am watching my sick cat and nursing a headache of my own. For those of you wondering, Ernie found an ibuprofen liquigel on the floor and proceeded to eat it, resulting in a $400 vet bill and 3 separate trips to see Dr. Hanna for blood work, charcoal and gastroprotectants. Silly animals.
Here's a recipe I pulled from the Runner's World website. Enjoy!
Shrimp and Tofu Stir Fry
1/2 pound firm to extra-firm tofu, blotted dry
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup mushrooms, stemmed, cleaned, and sliced
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, rinsed, and dried
1/4 cup white wine or sherry
1/2 cup vegetable stock or water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Cut tofu into one-inch cubes. Put one tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. When hot, add mushrooms and cook, stirring, until browned and almost crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon; set aside. Add remaining oil to pan, then the garlic and ginger; cook, stirring, for 10 seconds; add pepper and broccoli and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli turns bright green and softens, about 10 minutes. Add tofu and shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp turns pink, a few minutes. Add wine and stock; cook, stirring, until about half evaporates; return mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring, for a minute to reheat. Add soy sauce; cook, stirring, until veggies becomes glossy, about 30 seconds.
You can also add rice as a carbohydrate base, which I've done in the past. Unfortunately I'm all out of rice, so this will be a nice low-carb alternative. I have a John Orr dress to fit into, yo.
Also, here is the recipe for the sexy chocolate cookies I mentioned a few days ago:
Midnight Chocolate Cookies
1/2 cup butter, room temp
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup flour, sifted
1/3 cup cocao powder, sifted
1/2 tsp baking soda, sifted
Preheat oven to 350degF. Prepare cookie sheets with parchment paper, and non-stick cooking spray.
Beat the butter, sugar, vanilla and egg together until light and fluffy. Sift dry ingredients together and mix thoroughly in a separate bowl. Slowly mix the dry ingredients in with the butter/sugar mixture until it is well-mixed.
With WET hands, make little dough balls no bigger than a walnut or large marble. Place them on the baking sheets, well apart from each other. Bake each batch for exactly 10 minutes. Cool on the baking pan for a few minutes and then until cool completely on baking racks.
Decorating options:
- Melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips or peanut butter chips (or both!) in strong Ziploc bags (seal and soak in warm water until the chips have melted. do NOT microwave Ziploc bags...). Cut a little corner off the bag and pipe chocolate patterns onto the cookies
- Add sprinkles to the chocolate while it's hot if you like.
Hope everyone is having a good week...the holiday Monday totally threw me off and I keep thinking it's Tuesday for some reason. I'm at home today all day for the first time in a while, since I am watching my sick cat and nursing a headache of my own. For those of you wondering, Ernie found an ibuprofen liquigel on the floor and proceeded to eat it, resulting in a $400 vet bill and 3 separate trips to see Dr. Hanna for blood work, charcoal and gastroprotectants. Silly animals.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Alive and full of turkey
I haven't been posting diligently at all. To all (four) of you following, sincere apologies. I know at least a few of you guys check this thing periodically and 25 Things must have gotten pretty boring about 1/4 of the way through the first read-through.
Anyhow, so a few weeks later here I am! I just got back from a vacation back home in the DR with my family. My brother and I drove up Friday and I packed us some sweet sandwiches and snacks for the trip. Let it be known that I never forced vegetarianism on my brother, deciding instead to pack his sandwich FULL of roast beef and gladly hand it over.
A few food discoveries from the last few weeks:
1. Mustard. Obviously I already knew about mustard and its awesomeness, but in a recent attempt to make a tzatziki sandwich with a not-so-perfect tzatziki and boring vegetables, I stood in front of the fridge at work wondering what I could use to zip up this sandwich and make it tasty. Answer = mustard. I had lettuce, tomato, avocado and peppers in there, and let me tell you: it was so good that I finished it up and brought my leftover peppers the next day to just dip in a huge vat of mustard. My love of mustard has been renewed.
2. Organic local free-range Thanksgiving turkey. Need I say more? My mom was awesome and found a farmer outside of Barry's Bay who raises turkeys and chickens and he was delivering some sheep to Pembroke last week (ahah! oh Ottawa valley) and dropped the bird off for my mom to pick up. It was all cleaned up inside, no fat, really juicy and lovely. It didn't taste any different from "regular" turkey but I felt way better knowing this bird had a full happy life clucking away at whatever it found in its nice big airy field (that's right: grass-fed). Also, I was half expecting my body to freak out over this mysterious "meat" entering the mix, but so far so good.
3. Harvey's veggie burger. Originally on the way back the plan for Simon and I was to stop at the Subway in Smiths Falls for some supper, but unfortunately it was closed. I didn't feel like a heavy and possibly sketchy egg salad at Timmie's and I was about to get a salad or fries when I spotted this thing on the menu and thought, why not? Turns out this burger is super yummy and juicy and doesn't have that gross fake tofu taste that some veggie burgers do. I loaded up on the lettuce, tomato, pickles, hot peppers, ketchup and obviously mustard, and on a whole wheat bun it wasn't bad. I'm not used to the fast food since the closest I've had in the last while is a Subway veggie sub, but despite being veggie the Harvey's burger is a burger nonetheless and sat like a brick in my stomach for the rest of the trip.
My mom sent me back with a ton of turkey leftovers, as well as the bones and neck so I can make soup. I might upload some recipes on this front, and someone kick me if I don't put up this awesome recipe for these sexy dark "midnight" chocolate cookies I made last week.
julie
PS. My hair is back to its natural colour for the first time in ... oh man ... 5 years? and it feels really nice. Eating well, being almost back to my old self, doing shittons of yoga and looking forward to a protein structure in my near future and a fancy dinner with my awesome sexy friends in November. Now if only I could replenish my supply of red pens...
Anyhow, so a few weeks later here I am! I just got back from a vacation back home in the DR with my family. My brother and I drove up Friday and I packed us some sweet sandwiches and snacks for the trip. Let it be known that I never forced vegetarianism on my brother, deciding instead to pack his sandwich FULL of roast beef and gladly hand it over.
A few food discoveries from the last few weeks:
1. Mustard. Obviously I already knew about mustard and its awesomeness, but in a recent attempt to make a tzatziki sandwich with a not-so-perfect tzatziki and boring vegetables, I stood in front of the fridge at work wondering what I could use to zip up this sandwich and make it tasty. Answer = mustard. I had lettuce, tomato, avocado and peppers in there, and let me tell you: it was so good that I finished it up and brought my leftover peppers the next day to just dip in a huge vat of mustard. My love of mustard has been renewed.
2. Organic local free-range Thanksgiving turkey. Need I say more? My mom was awesome and found a farmer outside of Barry's Bay who raises turkeys and chickens and he was delivering some sheep to Pembroke last week (ahah! oh Ottawa valley) and dropped the bird off for my mom to pick up. It was all cleaned up inside, no fat, really juicy and lovely. It didn't taste any different from "regular" turkey but I felt way better knowing this bird had a full happy life clucking away at whatever it found in its nice big airy field (that's right: grass-fed). Also, I was half expecting my body to freak out over this mysterious "meat" entering the mix, but so far so good.
3. Harvey's veggie burger. Originally on the way back the plan for Simon and I was to stop at the Subway in Smiths Falls for some supper, but unfortunately it was closed. I didn't feel like a heavy and possibly sketchy egg salad at Timmie's and I was about to get a salad or fries when I spotted this thing on the menu and thought, why not? Turns out this burger is super yummy and juicy and doesn't have that gross fake tofu taste that some veggie burgers do. I loaded up on the lettuce, tomato, pickles, hot peppers, ketchup and obviously mustard, and on a whole wheat bun it wasn't bad. I'm not used to the fast food since the closest I've had in the last while is a Subway veggie sub, but despite being veggie the Harvey's burger is a burger nonetheless and sat like a brick in my stomach for the rest of the trip.
My mom sent me back with a ton of turkey leftovers, as well as the bones and neck so I can make soup. I might upload some recipes on this front, and someone kick me if I don't put up this awesome recipe for these sexy dark "midnight" chocolate cookies I made last week.
julie
PS. My hair is back to its natural colour for the first time in ... oh man ... 5 years? and it feels really nice. Eating well, being almost back to my old self, doing shittons of yoga and looking forward to a protein structure in my near future and a fancy dinner with my awesome sexy friends in November. Now if only I could replenish my supply of red pens...
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