oh, dang.

Luckily, I've been doing better with my eating than with my blogging. Although, a combination of some hard times and a surly uterus did contribute to a couple un-diet-y indulgences this past weekend. For the most part I'm going okay. Thirteen pounds down, and I'm feeling good about it. Just over half way to my first goal of twenty-five pounds. Woot!

And, I've definitely been doing some good eatin'. Last night I made this recipe for Orange Pan-Glazed Tempeh, recently featured on 101cookbooks.com. As Heidi promises, it's lick-your-plate good. It's a recipe that she tweaked by Jude Blereau. Her new cookbook (that contains this recipe) isn't available in the US yet, but I found her previous one used on amazon, and it should arrive any day. I can't wait.

I paired the tempeh with wheatberries, per Heidi's suggestion, and Barbara made some garlic green beans to go with it. It was a taste and textural dream! Really. Make this tonight.


Other recent highlights have been:
-Heidi's firecracker cornbread with spicy rice and beans

-homemade flour tortillas for burritos with leftover spicy rice and beans

-chili verde with seitan (using one of my holiday gifts - some of Chef Bill Fuller's home-canned green chili sauce)


And, just for fun, here's a picture of our dogs in their new coats!

struggling

I've just gotten started, and I'm already struggling. When it's zero degrees (or less) outside, all I want is some comfort food--something, anything that is warm and gooey and bad for me.

And, I also feel pretty depressed--possibly the weather, or just a regular bout of what I'm prone to.

I know, logically, that eating well and making progress on my goal will make me feel good, but in the moment it's tough to remember that.

Also, work has been sucktastic for the past few months, and I'm just feeling stressed.

But, I'm trying to soldier on. I went swimming with Kramer at the Oliver Bath House a few days ago, and we're planning on going again today (though the thought of being damp even for a second in this frigid air is scary!). I'm trying to remember that it felt really nice, and was a great low-impact exercise that doesn't hurt my feet and my ankle.

At least it's Friday, right?

another one bites the dust!

Actually, another five. Pounds, that is. Down ten in total so far!

It's really satisfying to see some movement on the scale going down instead of up. It's always slower than I'd like, but I'm just glad it's happening.

The weekends are more challenging for me since there's more time around the house for snacking and such, and more opportunities to feel like I'd like to indulge, but all in all, I did okay. I did splurge on making pancakes on Saturday morning, which didn't seem so bad until I entered them in the recipe calculator. And, there were other, more reasonable splurges, like some homemade vanilla-coconut frozen yogurt with fresh mango (with the 0% Fage Greek yogurt).

Tonight I have my monthly "Queers: They're What's For Dinner!" dinner, and I'm not sure what the menu will be, but i just have to keep portion control in mind, and I think I'll be okay.

the week in review

I don't remember how long they (the ever-present "they") say it takes to make a habit, but it hasn't happened yet. I've been doing well, but it's always a struggle in the evenings. When we're huddled around ye olde television set watching some "Lost" or "Office" dvds, I want something to have, something for snacking. Usually chocolate comes to mind.

But, I've actually done okay, despite my cravings. I've been tracking my food and intake on www.sparkpeople.com. It's really helpful for me to have to log everything because it completely cuts out the mindless snacking--which was happening A LOT, at work especially.

I didn't stick exactly to the meals we'd planned, but pretty closely, which was really nice to not have to turn circles in the kitchen for a half hour before deciding what to make for dinner. And, nice to have leftovers to bring as lunches. I've been planning out my days at work every day, and that's been working great. I bring breakfast, a.m. snack, lunch, p.m. snack, and then I feel well-fed all day, and am not ravenous as soon as I walk in the door at home.

Here's a sample of my feed bag for work:

from l-r:
1. Steel-cut oats, soaked overnight (not cooked) w/ red grapefruit, raspberries & blueberries w/ Fage 0% fat Greek yogurt and a drizzle of honey
2. a raw carrot, sliced into bite-size pieces
3. leftovers from the night before--Thai pineapple curry
4. 2% milkfat cottage cheese with a little fresh pineapple
5. down in front, a whole-wheat lavash roll-up with cheddar, avocado, spinach and a little diced quorn

Taking snacks like this, I feel satisfied and healthy all day.

I've also been having water chug-offs with my favorite work-pal every hour on the hour. That guarantees that we've gotten our eight cups by the time we leave for the day.

And, here's the curry before the brilliant colors were dulled by a night in the fridge. I just threw this together, but next time I'll add tofu and onion for sure. And, a little more heat.


I bought myself a rice cooker for ease of making grains (confession: I suck at making rice), and I love it!! That was the first run, and the rice was perfection. I LOVE it.

Okay, have a super weekend, and keep on keepin' on.

the first week

So, today officially marks a week into the Health Quest 2009! (I started a couple days still in 2008). I am planning to weigh myself each Monday morning to chart the progress, and this morning I was down by 5.4 lbs! Woot! That's encouraging to see! I attribute this all to all the water I've been drinking. And, I was thinking that I'd start to keep a list of some tips that are helping me.

1. Drink LOTS of water. I'm trying to make sure that I drink, at bare minimum, 8 cups of water per day.
2. Track everything I eat. For one, I find this fun, for two, I'm less likely to mindlessly snack when I know that I have to log everything.
3. Try to be flexible.

Number Three is a hard one for me. I'm rigid by nature, and I find this trait to be both a positive and a negative, depending on the circumstance. When I began my Health Quest in 2007 I was so strict that I ate no (zero) processed foods. I didn't eat out. I didn't eat at other people's houses. I spent pretty much all my time cooking and logging and blogging. Which did help me learn to cook a lot of things that I'd never attempted before, but also contributed to my feeling of being so completely invested in the strictness of my program that when I fell off the wagon, it felt overwhelming to have deviated from the plan.

So, I'm trying to be much more relaxed about it this time. The truth of the matter is that it's going to take a long time to lose the weight and gain the health that I want, so I need to be realistic in settling into something I can live with for a long time. So, if I eat something out that is higher in fat or calories (or whatever), then I just need to balance that the rest of the day(s) to make sure that I'm continuously heading in the right direction, but not feeling constantly hungry or deprived. I don't want food to be a reward or punishment tool anymore. Instead I want it to just be something that I love--to cook, to learn about and to eat.

To those ends, I did a little cooking this weekend. Just some simple things. I made the Caesar Salad from Veganomicon (just tweaked a tiny bit to cut back on some of the oil while retaining the fantastic flavor), some egg salad (replaced half of the mayo with greek yogurt), and some awesome peach frozen yogurt that I made with some home-canned peaches I got as an xmas gift (in the work Secret Santa exchange from Chef Bill Fuller). I love yogurt. I especially love frozen yogurt. And, I especially-especially love having the taste of REAL peaches in the dead of winter.

Here's my uber-simple peach fro-yo recipe. I use a Cuisinart ice cream maker, but here's a great article by David Lebovitz about making frozen treats even if you don't have a machine.

Peach Frozen Yogurt
makes 6 servings

8oz 2% Fage Greek Yogurt
8oz 0% Fage Greek Yogurt
4 peaches (separated)
1/4 c. sugar
1 T. freshly-squeezed lemon juice

Using a food processor or blender, combine the yogurts, 3-3.5 of the peaches, the sugar and the lemon juice. Taste, and adjust sugar and lemon juice as necessary.

Freeze in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer instructions. About halfway through the freezing, throw the remaining peach (cut in small chunks) into the mix.

My machine finishes in about 20 minutes, and comes out the consistency of soft serve. If I can wait to dig in, I freeze it for about a half hour to firm it up a little.

.........

Oh, and Number Four is a big one: Plan my meals for the week in advance! I've always just sorta cooked by inspiration, and by digging around in the pantry, but I tend to WAY overbuy groceries and often don't have that one ingredient I'd need for whatever it is. But, again, I don't have to be super rigid in the plan. Things can change. The loose sketch for this week's dinners is:

Monday: Beans & Greens with pasta and a salad
Tuesday: Butternut-Bean veggie burgers
Wednesday: Big Salad
Thursday: Thai Pineapple Curry over jasmine rice
Friday: leftovers or a stir-fry or big salad
Saturday: Wheatberry Salad & Sloppy Janes
Sunday: Veggie Chili and corn bread

I'm trying to think about what ingredients may be used in various meals, as well as planning for lunches to take to work. Another project for this week is that we're going to start washing and prepping all our veggies to have them ready at a moment's notice for salads, stir-fries, etc.

Anyhow, keep on keepin' on, peeps. And again, please share any little words of encouragement or tips you have up your sleeve. It really does help.

re-dedication 2009

When I first started this blog, I had a couple of months under my belt of Health Quest 2007. In the preceding months, my father had died of diabetes complications, I'd discovered Michael Pollan and Heidi Swanson, and I was afire with dedicating myself to get my health and weight under control. And, I did really, really well for six or seven months, and then I started gradually adding back in sweets and processed foods until I'd gained back all I'd lost (plus four extra pounds), and found myself in the doctor's office with a mysterious rash that was explained as a pre-Diabetes warning sign. And, then a few days later I saw a picture of myself, looking not unlike Jabba the Hutt, shoving a forkful of food into my mouth. Yuck.

So, this is my re-dedication to Health Quest 2009. I'm going to start blogging more regularly because it helps to have to be accountable. And, I'm starting fresh. Making sure I am drinking my 8 cups of water (at least). Cutting out all the processed crap that eked back into my diet over the past year and a half. Keeping an eye on my nutritional intake. Exercising.

And, all the while trying not to get so obsessive with it that I give it all up when I have one misstep.

I fired up my old www.sparkpeople.com account to track my food and exercise. I like data. It helps me stay focused. And, it's a free site. If you're trying to lose weight and get healthy, you should check it out. It works much like a Weight Watchers-style plan.

If anyone has some supportive words of encouragement, a personal story, or any such thing, please post it in the comments!

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving, Xmas/Chanukah/Kwanza and New Year!

wintry mix

It snowed this weekend.

While I think snow is pretty when it's lain like a blanket over everything and iced the trees in lacy white, I still hate to see this time of year come. (this is NOT the kind of snow we had this weekend, btw).

But, I did do a little cooking in my effort to once and for all eradicate the cold/flu-type thing that's been pestering me and trying to get a foothold for the past week or so. Heidi posted a recipe from Super Natural Cooking on her blog the other day, and it's one that I'd overlooked previously. You can find the post and recipe here. It seemed like the kind of soup that fights off colds. It was good and easy, if a bit plain. I made her "Cornmeal Crunch" recipe to have alongside it. We had that for Sunday dinner along with some roasted acorn squash and onion and some little buttermilk biscuits, and Barbara's Garlic Green Beans with Buttered Breadcrumbs. Luckily, the green beans saved the meal from being completely monochromatic (and I was drinking apple cider, to add another element of golden goodness).


Speaking of that cider, actually, you guys (in the Greater Pittsburgh area) should seek out the cider from Kistaco Farms. I first tasted it when we got it a couple times in our CSA. It's so, so good. The co-op is carrying it right now. Get some! It's the best cider ever!

And, now I have some sad news to report. The last Saturday of the season for the Firehouse Farmers Market is this coming Saturday. And, the last week of the season for the city Farmers Markets is next week. There is one year-round market, but it's a bit sparse.

Farewell, fresh local produce. I'll miss you terribly, and I'll be waiting with bated breath for you in the spring.

celebration

I can't, as I'm sure many of you can't, stop thinking about Election Night. Never in my lifetime have I seen so many people celebrating--so joyous, so together as one. All over the country, all over the world, even! It's an amazing thing. I know, of course, that Obama isn't a one-man fix to all our problems, but his win has made me, and so many of us feel HOPE for the first time in so, so long.

Here's my favorite video of the celebrations because it also includes another of my favorite things...Journey.

Enjoy!

for fun

I snagged this from Bill Fuller's blog. While I'm currently a vegetarian, not an omnivore, I have been an omnivore at various times in life, and have always been an adventurous eater. Here's how this little meme works:

Here is the original link. (The parentheticals are mine--ek).


The Omnivore’s Hundred

Here’s a chance for a little interactivity for all the bloggers out there. Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers.

Here’s what I want you to do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (no, but have tried alligator)
6. Black pudding (hockey pucks of doom)
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese (no, but I've seen it. i think that's close enough)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters (oh, how I miss oysters...)
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi (I'm always curious to try this, but always go for the sweet or mango)
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea (this just means a traditional tea w/ clotted cream scones, right?)
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat (Have had goat; just not curried)
42. Whole insects (only by accident, which I don't think counts)
43. Phaal (i will rely on its reputation)
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine (Hurd, remember that trip to Toronto?)
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (clay?)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian (i really want to! i love the idea of a fruit that's been banned for being stinky)
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost (this sounds yummy)
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant (someday...French Laundry or Per Se...)
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

beans, beans, good for your heart

Okay, so I hadn't really thought about it until last night, but I made several dishes with beans as the central player. And, that became obvious in our household yesterday evening. I'll say no more.

Except this.

Here's what it looks like the first time you introduce a new bean dish in your home:


And, here's what it looks like when you've introduced the fourth bean dish in one weekend:


And, speaking of bean dishes, here's one of them that I remembered to photograph. We had the Spicy Autumn Burgers last night with some oven baked fries and a basil aioli. (and, I actually had the last burger for lunch today, and they're even better the next day!).


Okay. Enough of beans.

Tonight I think we're going to have pasta with tomato sauce and "meat"balls. There's a recipe in my How To Cook Everything Vegetarian with nuts and rice as the base. Seriously, if you're a vegetarian, you should own this cookbook. It has EVERYTHING, and variations on each recipe. I love it. Mark Bittman thinks of everything. And, he's not even a vegetarian. Amazing.

And, though it has nothing to do with food, I'll share this photo with you of my number one boy and his friend and cuddle buddy, Chewbacca.