Meatless May...Last Day

Well, here I am.  May 31.  The last day of Meatless May.  I'll admit it--I'm sort of sad.  I've really enjoyed pushing myself to create new meals and finding ways to maneuver around the meat based meals at family gatherings and most restaurants.  So at the end of the month what pros and cons have I found?

Pros
-I hardly ever feel guilty after I eat.  I load most of my meals with green vegetables--what's to feel guilty about?  (There were a handful of unhealthy meals thrown in but hey--life isn't perfect.)
-More energy.  I'm usually sluggish most of the time; I often feel just plain exhausted.  But this month that hasn't been the case.  I've even had the energy to go to the gym almost everyday this month.
-Every dish is so colorful!  It feel fantastic to sit down with a plate bursting with color in front of me versus a plate of khaki.

Cons
-Eating a somewhat healthy meal at a restaurant is almost impossible.  If you're going with other people and it's not somewhere that is known for having vegetarian friendly recipes then you better throw healthy options out the window.  Most places have veggie burgers but with the fries on the side, you really aren't helping yourself.  I went out to eat with my parents one day and my choices were...well...a side salad.  I opted to skip that since I wanted to actually eat something of substance and chose a quesadilla without the chicken.  First of all, they still charged me full price.  Secondly, it had some the greasiest mushrooms I have ever come across.  Thirdly, not healthy considering the amount of cheese and grease that was stuffed inside.     
-Gas.  Enough sad.

I will not continue being a vegetarian but I have decided that I won't be putting meat on my grocery list.  I'll stick to vegetarian meals when cooking and then when I'm with others and there isn't a good veggie option available I'll eat meat.

Hear are some final pictures...and these are actually ended up being my favorite from the week:                   

                           
Stuffed red peppers. (Red peppers stuffed with brown rice, kidney beans, and spinach)

Stuffed Mushrooms
See the full recipe at my brand new food blog :A La Avocado

Delicious tofu tip:  Soak tofu overnight in your favorite dressing and hot sauce and then throw them in your salad the next day. Amazing.

Squash Noodles.  (Watch for the recipe to appear on A La Avocado)

Avocado, sun dried tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, jalapeno, Parmesan, and sweet chilli sauce on a spinach wrap.   Great lunch.

Meatless May...Day 19

Over halfway done with Meatless May! (and two weeks till I leave for Hong Kong!)  

So far it really hasn't been that bad.  The first week and a half I really missed meat and stressed about every meal--"What in the world am I going to eat?"  "I am soooo hungry."  "I want Chic-fil-a RIGHT NOW."  But I've overcome the hump it seems and I'm feeling pretty awesome--lots of energy, none of that heavy feeling after eating.  I have very rarely eaten rice or pasta and I've worked hard to make every meal mostly vegetables.  An odd observation that I've made is that I have zero cravings for anything.  The notion of eating to live has taken place over my old one of living to eat I suppose and therefore--no real cravings.  (Except that I'm currently watching people on TV eat take-out Chinese food and the allure of steamed dumplings is hard to ignore)

Here are some more pictures from experiment:

Brown rice with broccoli and asparagus (asparagus is great on anything...especially if you drizzle olive oil on it and roast it)





I tried a veggie burger at Remington Grill and didn't care for it.  It was thin and spongy.  Not to knock on Remington Grill--I love everything else I've ever had there and was surprised they even offered a veggie burger so I'm now holding it against them.  I also tried a veggie burger at Carolina Ale House and it was AH-mazing.

This one is pretty original in my opinion---mashed sweet potatoes, black beans, and guacamole quesadilla (Although I guess it's not technically a quesadilla considering there wasn't any cheese).  Experimenting with tortillas is always fun and this turned out well.

I bought a huge container of diced sweet potatoes and it's been fun figuring out what to do with them other than make a casserole.  One night I threw them in the oven and roasted them after sprinkled oregano and olive oil on them and ate then with a scrambled egg---sooooo good. 

Tonight I'm gearing up for a veggie stuffed red pepper--let's see what happens!

Meatless May...Day 9

I tried several new recipes this past week--most of them were made up on the fly and I'm pretty proud of that fact.  This past weekend was my biggest challenge in my meatless endeavor: Hot Dog weekend.

I'm fully aware that hot dogs are gross in theory but let us be honest here; hot dogs are amazing.  They are cheap, easy, and nostalgic; everyone remembers smothering a hot dog with ketchup during a pool party on a hot summer's day as a kid.  As I've gotten older, they've only gotten better.  Since the days of holding a hot dog in my wet, chlorine smelling hands at the ripe age of nine I've learned that the hot dog is a canvas for any foodie.  Sauerkraut, mustard, jalapenos, cheese, relish, mayonnaise, hot sauce, chili, onions, slaw, tomato slices, pickles, peppers,  and let's not forget ketchup. 

Needless to say, it took all my energy to turn down hot dogs not once---but twice--this weekend.  I attended two hot dog parties this weekend and munched on potato chips and baked beans (sadly picking out the delicious bacon).  But I did say no and that is pretty fantastic.  (I also attended a taco party and ate a lettuce and tomato taco. It was a very hungry weekend).

To make peace with my angry, hot dog deprived taste buds, I set out to try several new things this week.

I call this chick pea salad.  Super easy.  Lay out your asparagus on a baking sheet and lightly coat them in olive oil and broil them on low until they look done.  Add the grape tomatoes to the baking sheet during the last two minutes.  Then you throw the asparagus and tomatoes in a bowl with chick peas and artichoke hearts.  Add a little olive oil dressing and you have chick pea salad!

Pizza made by my friend Heather...a smorgasbord of veggies topped with cheese.  I've never seen avocado on a pizza before--great addition!

I have no idea what this is.  I just threw some red peppers in olive oil and cooked them for a few minutes before adding mushrooms, broccoli, diced tomatoes, and cheese.  It was good but sadly not very filling.  Perhaps on round two I'll leave out the cheese and add rice.

Jimmy Johns!!  Veggie Sandwich on wheat--tomatoes, cucumbers, avocado spread, provolone, peppers, and lettuce

This was my most disappointing meatless meal.  Just a simple sushi roll minus the fish.  It's just ain't sushi without fish people.

Meatless May...Day 3

I'm only three days in but the biggest change so far is the fact that I have to fix every meal.  I usually eat frozen meals for lunch and either a turkey sandwich or some concoction with grocery store chicken each night.  I'm needing to force myself to prepare lunch for work the night before because I'm already scrambling around in order to make it there as it is.

That small complaint aside I feel great.  I'm pretty sure I'm eating more food but I feel better, more energetic.  I've consumed more vegetables in the past three days than I usually do in a month.

I made my first meat free sandwich (besides grilled cheese...but hey I put bacon on a grilled cheese if I can (-: )

Avocado, cabbage, and alfalfa sprouts on wheat.  It was fantastic.  And so far my favorite veggie meal I've made.  Crunchy and creamy and just plain delicious. 









I tried my hand at veggie fried brown rice but I didn't think it was all that great--Ashley and my aunt liked it but I thought it was missing something.  I'll have to try it out again.  I did make a macho Quesadilla though stuffed with veggies. 

Black beans, diced tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, avocado, Frank's sweet and spicy sauce, on a spinach wrap.  This thing was monstrous.  In retrospect I should have patted the black beans and diced tomatoes with a paper towel first---but it was still awesome.   





And let's not forget the good stand by:

Tonight's meal?  Chex cereal with almond milk followed by wine---cause I eat like a king.

Meatless May...a vegetarian adventure

I've decided to try out being a vegetarian for the month of May.  It's no animal rights thing, I'm a firm believer in the food chain...the circle of life.

So now I'm playing the part of the antelope--I just pray the lion in my life, Skittles (my cousin's cat that I've temporarily adopted), won't pounce and eat me.  ps...I am aware antelope is misspelled in the picture.

I'm mainly doing this because I want to see if I can do it without breaking down at 2 in the morning and driving to Cook Out to order a BBQ sandwich and a corn dog...and I'm trying to maintain a healthier lifestyle.  

There are several challenges with this commitment.  I don't want to do this and end up eating pasta every night.  I need to push myself to really explore all the vegetarian options out there.  Which I can see becoming pretty costly.  Sadly, eating healthy is not cheap.  Veggies and fruit can rack up the grocery bill if you aren't careful...pasta and sauce is way cheaper.  So I intend to find a way to do this on my normal grocery budget without eating bowls and bowls of pasta. 

So there you have it.  My Meatless May--stay tuned for recipes, pictures, and comments!

The Mixer

For Christmas my papa gave me my late Mama Lou's stand mixer.  It's fantastic.  So I thought I'd share.

My grandpa and my mom were able to find most of the attachments my grandma had and I spent the better part of a night playing with all of them.

The classic.

So Sweeney Todd

mini baseball bat. just kidding.

Dough hook

or a hook hand.  You decide.

Happy New Year

Yeah, I've been a little MIA the month of December but here I am :)  To celebrate the new year I think a slight 2011 recap is in order.

Kelley and Cameron

Ringing in 2011 the Wizarding World of Harry Potter was a wonderful way to end the dreadful year of 2010 and welcome wonderful 2011.  This trip also introduced Cameron and I to the Rockin Roller Coaster and we now have an unforgettable DVD of the experience.






Then came my first taste of a baking craze.  Which eventually led to my teeny tiny cupcake business: The Cupcake Pub.  I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Paige for giving me the push I needed.  Right in time for her gorgeous wedding.

Paige and Brian

And of course, weddings come with really fun bacherlorette parties.

 Let's not forget that the final Harry Potter move came out this summer.  Ahh what a night of fun, tears, and excitement.

 I also was introduced to the Very Potter Musical and the Hunger Games this year.  Wonderful :)

At the end of a summer filled with Sanford and the beach I bid farewell and good luck to Sage as she made the big move to Kansas. I myself moved back to Raleigh with Ashley and Anna. 

Anna

 And bought my dream car.

Phoenix

2011 was the year of several road trips, including a couple of trips to Busch Gardens.  Trips that filled with roller coasters, scarecrows, hotels, and freezing our butts off.

Ashley, Emily, Kelley

Busch Gardens hit Ashley and I just right.  I'm slowly pushing her towards roller coasters--even if I have to drag her kicking and screaming on every ride.  She'll learn to love it.  I also got to spend a lot of time with Kelley on these trips which I think was wonderful. In fact, this year in general led to many opportunities to grow closer with Kelley and Cameron on road trips.

Cameron

All in all it was a great year.  And I look forward to the upcoming year :)

Potter Post 2 2/3--FOOD!

With the holiday season right around the corner (what am I saying?  It's already here!) our minds turn to food.  Pumpkin pie, dressing, honey baked ham, candied yams, green bean casserole, and the list goes on.   With thoughts of food filled days also comes the worries of weight gain and cholesterol levels--we can't completely indulge over the holidays for health reasons...but....but...what if we were witches and wizards?

 

This past weekend while standing in line for a haunted house in weather that felt below freezing, Andy and I were discussing how awesome it would be to be able to produce a bluebell flame to keep warm.  (It's a charm that produces a blue flame.  A charm that Hermione uses quite frequently in the books and puts them in jars to keep warm.)  This of course led to more Harry Potter discussion and eventually to food (don't the best conversations always end up being about food?).  But not just any food.  Food in Harry Potter.

There is a lot of food in Harry Potter.  Heavy traditional British food seems to be served at every meal.  It's never ending feast of fried sausages, shepherd's pie, cornish pasties, steak and kidney pudding, black pudding, baked pumpkin, potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, mint humbugs, apple pies, treacle tart, eclairs, doughnuts, and the list goes on and on.  And that's on an everyday basis.

As for food served when they are out and about in Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, or on the train?  Candy, candy, candy, chocolate balls with strawberry mousse and clotted cream, nougats, ice cream, coconut ice, toffee, chocolate everything, pumpkin tarts, butterbeer, soda with flavored syrups and again the list goes on.

Anything strike you as odd?  No? Nothing at all?  How about the lack of fresh fruit, salad, water, pasta salads...or really anything on the lighter side?  Those foods aren't there.  While living with his aunt and uncle, Harry may eat those foods--in fact, in the Goblet of Fire Dudley is on a strict diet and Harry lives off of meals of grapefruit and cottage cheese.  When his magical friends discover this they load him up with mince pies and cake. It seems that the only "healthy" eating that occurs is done by Muggles.  And that is rare, considering the Dursley's do not eat healthy.  Dudley is described as being the size of a small whale.

But you see, that's really interesting.  Dudley really doesn't eat all the differently from the Hogwarts students. Yet he's the size of a baby whale and Ron is described as being tall and lankly.  Something doesn't quite add up.

JKR stated once that witches and wizards generally live longer than muggles.  Well, considering what they eat on a daily basis this seems impossible.  Most likely, witches and wizards do not have the same health concerns as we do.  Something in them prevents them from having cholesterol problems or any other health issues that we have that keeps stuck to drinking water and eating salads.  They also seem to have a sort of immunity against obesity.  Sure Mrs. Weasley is described as being plump but my guess would be that comes from other factors, such as age.  If her weight reflected what she ate, she wouldn't be able to fit in the door.

Just another thing to make you jealous of the witches and wizards--they can eat whatever the heck they feel like eating.  And they do it with style.

Oh yeah.

For a fun essay, read this

떡볶이 Tteokbokki=best food ever.

 Last night we went out for my good friend's birthday, Hwayeon (she's beyond awesome) and ate Korean food :)

I love Korean food.  It's easily becoming my favorite food.  But for me, the cream of the crop is Tteobokki (Ddeokbokki).  It's spicy, fishy, and squishy.

So what is it?  It's a spicy rice cake dish

No! Not that kind!

This kind:

When cooked it becomes something similar to the dumplings you would find in Chicken-N-Dumplings, only thicker and cylinder shaped. 

The rice cakes are served with fishcakes (don't let the name deter you from something amazing) and some veggies all in a wonderful spicy sauce. For a great recipe check out this blog Migi's Kitchen: How to make the best Tteok Bok Kki

If you don't feel up to the challenge, find a good Korean restaurant or friend and eat up--or call me and we'll go together ;-)

State Fair Cupcake!

It's that time.  The State Fair here (which to us Raleigh people means doing some serious rerouting while driving to avoid the traffic).  It's time for turkey legs, fried EVERYTHING, Italian Sausages, vinegar fries...and of course: Candy Apples.

So in the spirit of the season I have a new cupcake to introduce you to.

Meet Caramel Apple Cameron Cupcake (as you know, I try to name all my cupcakes after people or fictional characters--this one is named after my brother)

A delicious granny smith apple cake with salted caramel buttercream frosting topped with crushed peanuts.  A bite of the state fair available year round!

Newest Cupcake: Amanda's PB & Chocolate Heaven

A few months ago my cousin asked me if I had a peanut butter cupcake.  No.  I did not.  I personally don't care for peanut butter flavored things.  I like peanut butter....I love it on apples, pretzels, celery, marshmallows-you name it.  I don't like peanut butter ice cream, cookies, fiber bars....and cake.  When I began this business, The Cupcake Pub, I swore never to make a product I personally didn't like.  And for those of you who know me-you know that I don't like 95% of cakes that I've tried.  Therefore every cupcake I bake is 100% approved by my incredibly picky taste-buds. 

But this suggestion came from my, at the time, pregnant cousin--and how can I refuse a family request?  Much less a pregnant lady? (By the way she now is the proud mama of a beautiful newborn baby boy!)

So I embarked on finding a peanut butter cupcake that I would eat.  And I succeeded.

This is my official chocolate and peanut butter cupcake.

Amanda's PB & Chocolate Heaven

Chocolate cake with a special peanut butter filling topped with peanut butter buttercream.

mmmmmm

I could not stop trying the buttercream and the cupcake is to die for.  The PB buttercream is unbelievably smooth and a dream to work with and I swear my Dad was giving me evil eyes for not making enough to cover the test cupcake. (I always bake one extra cupcake when it's a new recipe so I can test it before I sell it)

These babies are only $15 a dozen :)

cucpakes!

It was pointed out to me that as a cupcake girl, I have a surprisingly large lack of cupcake posts.  So from here on out I will blog about my cupcake adventures!!! Beginning with this little number:

Margarita Mary.  yes.  with tequila. (tequila lime cake w/ tequila lime buttercream)

I make this cupcake with or without tequila...but I must admit, the tequila lime buttercream is quite absurdly the best buttercream I've ever made or tasted.  I love lime frosting--it's sweet and tangy: the perfect combination.  But add that with tequila? It graduates to a league all it's own.  The sweet, tangy, lime buttercream becomes enriched with this small wave of pleasure.  The tequila isn't so strong that it will make you grimace but is just strong enough to remind you why you like frozen margaritas in the first place.  I'm itching to get a free Saturday to try every single tequila buttercream combo possible.

Veggie Cheat Sheet

This is an extremely awesome chart and much more useful than my "Do you think it's done? Let's taste it.  Let's poke it.  Let's smell it." route.

Also...if you were caught in a 12 foot snow storm I devised a recipe based on your supplies:
Take the maraschino cherries and crush them.  Then spread peanut butter on the Ritz crackers and spread the crushed cherries on tops and voila!  You have a mini sandwich to live off of until the snow melts.  Word of advice: only one ritz sandwich a day---12 feet of snow will take an awfully long time to melt.

The World of Leftovers.

My brother and I have discovered that my parents have a secret world of leftovers.  Possibly a passion for collecting the most one portion size leftovers ever in the history of the modern American family world.

 

The one lone egg

The lone...wait.  I have no idea what this is. Or was

Two bites of cereal

The lone hot dog

The lone corn dog

And last but not least...the left over chicken.  Tell me: how much more meat could really be gotten from this???