What Is Left To Eat? -- a Food Journal by Laura Bracken

Remember those hash browns (or breakfast patties) from my previous post?  Yesterday (which was the next day), I added twice the amount of potato to the remaining mixture and they were much more to my liking.  So that was breakfast.  Although I'm running low on Primal Kitchen Ketchup (Organic Tomato Concentrate, Organic Balsamic Vinegar, Less than 2% of Salt, Organic Onion Powder, Organic Garlic Powder, Organic Spices). I was taken out to lunch but I got to pick the restaurant and I remembered hearing the WFPB people have better options at Mexican, Thai, and Vietnamese  restaurants, so I picked a Vietnamese place with good reviews.  We both ordered Eggplant with Tofu (mine spicy, hers mild).  It was tasty but OH SO SWEET.  I'm guessing there was a crapton of sugar in the sauce.  Oh well.  We each ate half our meal and then had the leftovers for dinner. So that was my day yesterday.  No cooking.  And today, it appears to be runni...

Okay, back to keeping track of recipes I try so I know what to repeat and what to avoid. Yesterday I shared a PDF with a friend. It's a one-week meal plan along with shopping list(s). It's so easy for me to go off the rails if I’m not prepared. I suddenly realize I’m really hungry but don't have time to prepare anything and I’m totally sick of the "grab 'n go" foods like nuts and raisins. So I cave, just this once. (Except I cave a lot.) So I made myself a weekly meal plan. It's not set in stone. If I go out with friends, I know I will go off the rails slightly. No biggie. When I get home I return to the meal plan. Here's what it looks like. On the left, I have the days/meals, in the middle I list the recipe and where to find it, the column on the right is my shopping list (these are not all the ingredients for the recipes, merely the ingredients I don't already have on-hand). In a perfect world, I don’t eat processed foods, b...

Everything is a work in progress.  I don't believe any of us can follow one particular meal plan that is outlined by others without tweaking things to suite our particular needs. So yeah... I've got a new plan and I'm sharing it with you. The other day, a friend posted a link to this video.  I stopped what I was doing and watched the entire thing (which, if you know me, know that was MAJOR!). I've always been squeemish about eating animal products.  I don't even like the taste of meat or eggs or fish most times, but in my weirdly desperate attempt to make sure I get the protein I need, I was eating it.  I'd mask it with spices and sauces. The animal products I ate had to be from humanely raised sources, but something still didn't feel quite right. On the other hand, veganism?  That seems so .... severe. After watching the video, though, I'm willing to give it another go (been vegan before).  This time, however, I have more knowledge of ...

Friday is company night and it's the one non-vegan meal of the week. Salmon Stir Fry 1 cup of brown rice 1 cup of water (or stock if you like) Some salt A bit (maybe a tablespoon) of coconut oil (optional) Into the Instant Pot.  Manual for 15 mins.  NPR for 10 mins. Salmon fillets Miyoko's vegan butter, melted (I still don't want dairy) Onion powder Garlic powder Smoked paprika Salt and pepper Cayenne Dried parsley Juice of one lemon No measurements... I just throw stuff together.  I mixed up all the stuff above in a shallow bowl then dipped the salmon in and tried to rub the stuff on all parts of the salmon. I then put them into my toaster oven onto a pan in the center (my broiler pan).  The oven was preheated and running at 400 degrees.  The fillets should sizzle when you put them on the pan.  I set the timer for 10 minutes. Onion Carrots Celery Red bell pepper Zucchini Bok Choy Mung bean sprouts These all get a ...

After making my pumpkin pancakes (which were heavenly!), I still had a lot of pumpkin leftover but ... okay, I didn't want to make pumpkin pancakes again because, as good as they were, they require me to stand there at the stove, only cooking three at a time, and that can take a long time when you've got a double batch of pancakes. So I decided to try something that would require less of my time.  As before, I'm using Einkorn wheat.  Feel free to try substitutes if you like (like gluten-free, etc).  I'm also using eggs, so if you're vegan, use an egg substitute. Pumpkin Muffins 3 C canned, unsweetened pumpkin (which is a little under 2 cans) 2 chia eggs (mix 2T chia, ½ cup warm water) ½ C honey ½ C applesauce  ¼ maple syrup (optional) ¼ milk substitute (coconut, cashew, almond, etc) 1 t baking soda 1 t cinnamon 1 t nutmeg 1 t ginger ¼ t cloves ½ t salt 2 C gluten free flour (I use casava) ½ C chocolate chips, I use coconut sugar sweetened...

Today's recipe is neither vegan (although I'm sure it's easy enough to find a substitute for one egg) nor is it gluten free (again, I'm sure it'd be just as good with cassava flour). Learn to substitute to make a recipe what you want it to be.  Experimentation is awesome.  For every 100 kitchen experiments I do, probably only about 2 or 3 are fails. Yesterday was our first storm of the season so we'll call today's recipe my entry into warm, comfort food season. I actually really like winter because I love soups and stews.  Then again, I get excited when summer comes around because it means salads and smoothies.  Ha!  I just like to eat. While the following is not gluten free, I use Einkorn wheat flour because it is non-hybridized (it's still in the same form as it was 30,000 years ago). " Einkorn is the oldest wheat known to scientists and is considered man’s first wheat."... "Einkorn has a higher percentage of protein than moder...

Winner winner chicken dinner! Without the chicken, of course. Made something this morning that turned out awesome (and was fast and easy!). I'm going to share my recipe with you, but please keep in mind that I'm all for alterations.  Use whatever veggies you've got.  And although mine is vegan, feel free to meat it up if that's your pleasure. Vegan Thai Flavors Lentil and Vegetable Stew 1 large onion cut up a bit 2 T broth (or oil if you're not going oil free) 3 garlic cloves minced 2½ cups vegetable stock (or whatever you would normally use) 1 cup uncooked French lentils (use whatever lentils you have) 2 carrots cut up a bit ½ cauliflower cut up a bit 1 large zucchini cut up a bit Salt Red pepper flakes 1 can full fat coconut milk (use low fat if you like) 1 jar Thai Kitchen Green Curry Paste (4 oz jar.. see below for list of ingredients) Juice of 1 lime 1 can green beans, drained 1 can peas, drained You may notice there's a proces...