Mom’s Club Recipe: Peanut Butter Chicken over Quinoa
January 29, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Hi! I hope your weekend is off to a great start! Our’s is 
Yesterday afternoon we had Peter’s first parent/teacher conference (he’s doing awesomely) and then we had the best pizza we’ve had yet in Central Massachusetts, at Flats in Worcester. Flats focuses on local, organic ingredients, which is music to my ears (eyes? Whatever. You know what I mean). And they serve up pizza with a thin, crispy crust, which is music to my mouth. (Central Mass is the land of thick crust “Greek-style pizza.” Being from New Haven county, I’m all about the thin crust). Flats also offers delicious-sounding salads, sandwiches, and appetizers/snacks.
We started with the white bean hummus appetizer. The creamy and garlicky hummus was served atop two big crispy romaine lettuce leaves. The hummus delivery vehicles (HDVs) were crostini and crispy wontons. The dish was fresh and delicious. We followed that up with the “Jules” pizza (classic Napoli , thin crust, red sauce, torn basil, fresh mozzarella, sea salt and evoo). It was a little heavy on the evoo, but besides that it was wonderful. It was my first time eating real cheese in nearly a month. It was good, but I can still say that I’ll be limiting my cow’s dairy intake. I might have pizza with cow’s milk cheese once a month. On the rest of our “pizza nights” I’ll stick to veggie/hummus subs or make homemade pizza with Daiya.
Oh, one little touch that I loved was when the waitress brought out the pizza (cut into large, haphazard rectangles) on a ginormous silver tray, she placed the tray on top of a big empty tomato can (you’ll have to use your imagination because I was too busy stuffing my face to take pictures. I know, food blogger extraordinaire over here.) So, the can was a space saver and a reuse/recycle effort! Love it!
If you find yourself in Worcester, go to Flats (and BYOB). The End.
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Onto the real story of the day, here’s this week’s Mom’s Club recipe from Pam:
…Anyway, the recipe that I am going to share today is Peanut Butter Chicken over Quinoa. My son used to be allergic to lots of foods – milk, eggs, wheat, soy, apples, pineapple, spinach, but strangely enough, nuts have always been okay for him. So, for years, I had to cook allergen-free meals, and this one was everybody’s favorite.
Peanut Butter Chicken
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch cubes* (organic chicken, if possible – pwa)
1 medium onion, sliced
7 fresh mushrooms sliced (I slice them large, so we can pick them out of the children’s portions, as they don’t like mushrooms)
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes with juice (I like petit cut diced tomatoes)
3/4 cup chicken stock (I use boullion & water if I don’t want to open a carton of chicken stock)
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
salt and pepper to taste
prepared quinoa
Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook until chicken starts to turn white. Add the onion, mushrooms, and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly (I just stir occasionally) until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
Pour the tomatoes and chicken stock into the skillet, and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Stir in peanut butter and cook, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. This should take only a minute or two. If the sauce is not thickening, you may stir in more peanut butter.
Serve over quinoa (or rice or noodles).
*I have also made this recipe using chick peas instead of chicken.
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(Thanks, Pam! I’m definitely going to try this. I’ll probably make two pans – one with organic chicken and the other with chickpeas. Updated to add: while I was putting romaine lettuce leaves in my juicer, I thought that this dish may be a good filling for a lettuce wrap…I’m not sure how thick the sauce is, though…maybe the solid ingredients can be taken out of the pan with a slotted spoon and used as the lettuce wrap filling (along with quinoa) and then the sauce leftover in the pan could be used as a dip? - pwa)
Moo-ve over Milk Mustaches…
January 28, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Green Juice mustaches are where it’s at:
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IMPORTANT NEWS
There is some upsetting and scary news today in the world of organic food. The Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, has approved Monsanto’s genetically engineered alfalfa for planting this spring. When I read this I felt like a ball of hot lead dropped into my belly.
If you care about the food you eat and want the OPTION to eat true organic food (meaning, among other things, not genetically modified food), urge President Obama to stop Monsanto’s GE alfalfa.
This is an extremely hot topic, so there are many articles on the web written by more knowledgable and better-versed people than myself, so take a moment to read up on the decision and consider how you feel about the impact and consequences of genetically modified food on yourself and your family.
The Vegan Experience
January 25, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Hi! How are you? I hope you’re someplace warm. I’ll live vicariously through you. We had more snow this morning and another Nor’easter is on the way tomorrow. It’s challenging to stay positive, but I am trying! We’re just watching entirely too much SpongeBob in this house. I love that little guy, but it’s just too much.
So, Sunday was the last day of my 21-day vegan kick start program. I didn’t post too much about it over the last three weeks because, frankly, nothing too exciting happened. It was fairly easy for me to forgo dairy.
- On Friday nights when the boys had pizza, I ordered a veggie sub and added some hummus.
- Last Friday night I made my own pizza dough (which turned out pretty well. It needs tweaking, but it was edible!) and used Daiya mozzarella-style shreds (which are a lot better tasting than the cheddar-style shreds).
- We had bagels last weekend and I topped mine with avocado and nutritional yeast instead of veggie cream cheese or egg and cheese.
- We went out to dinner twice in three weeks and I didn’t have a problem finding vegan options on the menu. At a tapas place I had grilled rosemary bruchetta, a roasted vegetable special, and veggie paella (now, there may have been butter in the paella. I didn’t ask, but there may have been some. At least I passed on the Manchego!) And at a funky little pub-type place I had an amazing falafel salad with roasted farro, pine nuts and winter frisee topped with a lemon vinaigrette.
For the most part, I found vegan eating to be pretty simple and satisfying. I honestly didn’t crave cheese once.
Now, how do I feel?
I had hoped to feel lighter, cleaner and healthier by mid-January, and…
1. I feel heavier.
2. I feel like my PMS symptoms arrived early and with a vengeance.
3. I feel that I’m easily irritated, lacking patience, and kind of depressed.
4. In better news, I feel that my lungs have cleared. Yay! However, that may be due to the antibiotics I took the week I started the vegan kick start. Boo – I dread taking antibiotics, but push came to shove and I did not want to end up in the hospital with pneumonia. I’ve been taking probiotics to replenish the good bacteria the antibiotics may have killed off.
To say the least, I’m shocked by how I feel. I thought for sure I’d feel amazing after eating clean for three weeks. I looked back over my food diary and I don’t think that I overate. I seem to have had a good balance of food and nutrients.
I didn’t do the kick start to lose weight, but I certainly didn’t plan to gain weight either! My clothes are uncomfortably tight and I just don’t feel comfortable in my own skin.
I can’t make sense of it.
The only plausible reason I can think of is that since “my time of the month” coincided with the end of the kick start program, how I’m feeling now is simply Mother Nature giving me a good old kick in the butt. For 26 years, Mother Nature has kicked me in the butt something awful each month, but this month is up there with the worst times. “Blech” is all I can say. Mother Nature hates me.
So, maybe a nasty Mother Nature combined with a slight change in diet was enough to throw my body/metabolism out of whack. That’s my best guess.
All’s not lost though. I’m sure I’ll feel peachy-keen sometime next week. And I plan to get back into going to the gym–I haven’t worked out in ages since I hadn’t been feeling well. Exercising will make a world of difference, not only for my body, but it will help clear the winter SpongeBob sludge out of the space that once held my brain.
Ultimately, and despite how I’m feeling now, the last three weeks have re-invigorated my commitment to eating as cleanly as possible. Here’s some of what I’ll be doing from this point forward:
- Limit/exclude cow’s dairy.
- Drink green tea in place of coffee in the morning. (Coffee has been making me sick recently–and I can’t find a non-dairy creamer I like–so I’ve decided to switch to green tea for now. Maybe I’ll go caffeine-free at some point.)
- Drink fresh juice in the morning
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Yesterday morning and the morning before, I made this green juice:
2 Granny Smith apples
1 large cucumber
big handful of washed baby spinach
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This morning I had a carrot and apple juice:
4 carrots
2 Fuji apples
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I’ll also be cooking from two new pretty fabulous cookbooks by Terry Walters (a fellow Institute for Integrative Nutrition grad):
And this amazing cookbook:
While it’s not quite time to say I’ll be doing a Spring Cleaning, that’s pretty much what I’ll be doing. Like, forever. Not just now and not just in the spring. It’s going to be my new year-round lifestyle.
If being sick for months on end has taught me anything it’s that there is nothing better than feeling healthy. When I feel healthy, I can do anything; I can handle anything.
Really, is there anything better than that?
What I’ve Been Reading, and Stuff Like That
January 21, 2011 § Leave a Comment
The path to...more snow.
Hi there!
I’m writing this while watching the snow dance and fly outside my dining room window. It’s quite beautiful. I refuse to complain about it because:
a.) it’s January 21 (i.e. “winter”)
b.) it’s the northeast
c.) shoveling is great exercise
The {wine} glass is half full today, baby!
I apologize for not posting in a while. I just haven’t been feeling it, ya know? I have been doing a lot of reading, thinking, and shredding (old documents. It’s oddly therapeutic). So, I thought I’d share some things I’ve found to be interesting. From what I’ve been reading. My old documents and thoughts are rather boring.
- I just finished reading Little Bee, by Chris Cleave. It’s a story about an African refugee and the British family she “befriended.” I can’t say I loved this book: some of the characters weren’t developed enough for me and the dialogue, I thought, was contrived. But the story, while not based on a “true story,” is in fact true. Little Bee’s life isn’t imaginary. What happened to her in the book happens in the real world. Catch my drift? Her story is disturbing, uncomfortable, and sad. While I try to keep my entertainment on the humorous and light side, I think it’s important to occasionally take in books or movies that slap me in the face with dark reality and take me out of my comfort zone. I think everyone needs a peek at the underbelly once in a while. It helps to reinforce empathy, which, in my opinion, many people are lacking. You know? I’m currently reading The Lacuna, by Barbara Kingsolver. Her writing is as rich as a dark chocolate truffle, so I can only read a few pages at a time!
- Yesterday I checked out the new look of Honey & Jam. I just love Hannah’s blog. I can’t get over the fact that she’s only 20 years old! I’m in awe (and envious) of her talents. She always posts mouth-watering recipes and gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous photographs. I actually have three of her prints in my kitchen (see below, and forgive the glare). Her photos have a timeless quality; for me, they link the past to the present in a way. I was looking at them the other day and thought that Emily Dickinson or Jane Austen could very well have looked at the same flower or cup of tea, on the same rustic wood table, and taken a picture of it ( if she had a camera!)
- And speaking of talented young women, in yesterday’s post Hannah linked to Cooking for Seven, a food and photography blog by 21-year old Erica Lea. Again, scrumptious recipes and swoon-y photography (am I the only person who swoons over pretty photographs?) After perusing her site for a bit, I thought “God bless the Internet for allowing me to view amazing things from women in Georgia and Northern Minnesota.” Hannah and Erica seem like soul sisters who live thousands of miles apart and most likely never would have met were it not for the blogosphere. I don’t know, it just strikes me as wonderful and inspiring.
- Which happen to be words I use to describe MamaPea’s blog! She’s one of my every-morning reads, along with The Fitnessista, Oh She Glows, and Cupcakes and Cashmere. Anyway, MamaPea recently posted a great recipe called ”Cracklin Cauliflower.” I made it the other night and served it with brown rice. Peter and I both gobbled it up. The only change I would make next time would be to add fingerling potatoes to the mix for a kind of amped-up aloo gobi.
- And finally, I found a recipe for whole wheat pizza crust that I am going to attempt to make today! It’s my first time using yeast, so keep your fingers crossed for me. I need to get started on it now if we’re going to have pizza for dinner tonight.
In case you’re wondering, I’m still doing the 21-day vegan kick start. It’s been going well and I think I’ll devote a larger post to it this weekend.
Enjoy the weekend and STAY WARM if you’re in the northeast. I heard that it’s going to be “eyeball freezing” weather! Brrr!
Mom’s Club Recipe: Salmon Burgers
January 14, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Hello! I hope you’re doing well~
Here’s a Salmon Burger recipe from Sarah:
Salmon Burgers
1 14.75 oz can salmon (I get the wild Alaskan salmon at Trader Joe’s–(Sarah))
1/2 cup egg substitute (I use one egg–(Sarah))
1/2 cup crushed saltines (about 14–I have used whole grain crackers before too–(Sarah))
1/3 cup sliced green onions (I skip this if I don’t happen to have any– (Sarah))
1 tbs lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt and pepper
Let your kids crush the saltines (FUN!) and dump everything into a bowl and mix. If you don’t usually buy canned salmon you just need to open it up and pull out the bones–a little messy but still quick and easy to do. Mix it all up and form four patties. Cook in skillet, medium heat, for about 3-5 minutes a side until just browned.
I serve them plain with rice pilaf and green beans. You could make actual burgers with buns and fixings too.
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(Thanks, Sarah! I haven’t tried these yet, mainly because I don’t care for fish, but I may make them for Pete and Peter. Here’s an article from “Prevention” magazine which discusses the dangers of farmed salmon and recommends using canned salmon, which is almost exclusively wild salmon. I do wonder about the BPA in the cans, though! Nothing is easy when it comes to choosing the “right” food…We can only make educated decisions and hope for the best! – pwa)
(One last thing, no matter what I’m eating, whether it’s a kale salad or a plate of fries, I always say a little blessing in my head like “Thank you for this food and allow it to nourish me as best it can. – pwa)
Have a great weekend!
My Go-to Lentil Soup Recipe
January 12, 2011 § 4 Comments
I have no idea from where this recipe originated. It’s written in my circa 1995 handwriting on a piece of food-splattered, wrinkled notebook paper. My handwriting is constantly changing, it’s bizarre. I couldn’t copy this script now if I tried.
Lentil Soup
Go-to Lentil Soup
Serves approximately 6 people
Ingredients
1 onion, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 organic carrots, diced
2 stalks organic celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 (14.5 oz.) can organic crushed tomatoes (I usually use a 28 oz. can** - pwa)
2 cups dried lentils, picked over and rinsed
8 cups water, organic vegetable broth, or organic chicken broth (I use 8 cups of vegetable broth – pwa)
1/2 cup organic spinach, rinsed and thinly sliced, optional
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, optional
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery; cook and stir until onion is tender. Stir in garlic, bay leaf, oregano, and basil; cook for 2 minutes.
Stir in lentils and add broth and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for at least 1 hour. When ready, stir in spinach, and cook until it wilts. Stir in vinegar, if desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
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This soup is so easy and satisfying. I often add curry powder and turmeric to spice up leftovers, too.
If you’re a dunker like me, you’ll love it with grilled cheese/Daiya.
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And if you’re in the Northeast like we are, today is the PERFECT day for soup. We’s got us some snows:
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**You may want to look for Tetra Paks of crushed tomatoes since it’s been reported that the lining of the tomato cans contain BPA. I believe Trader Joe’s carries Tetra Paks of crushed tomatoes.
Energizing and Citrusy Kale Salad with Avocado
January 11, 2011 § 2 Comments
So, this is the 9th day of my successful vegan life.
And this right here is my 100th blog post! (For some reason, Christina Aguilera’s ”Dirrty” is the celebratory song in my head. “Ring the alarm, ring the alarm…Oh, I’m overdue, give me some room…”)
Anyway, I’m not a hugely active blogger, but 100 posts in just under one year seems like a respectable amount. Right? I think I’ve stayed true to my initial vision (which can be read here), although I didn’t spend as much time on a few topics, such as gardening and travel, as I thought I would (no, we didn’t go to Tuscany. Boo.). (And, NO, Peter and I didn’t pick enough blueberries to get us through the winter. The kid eats a whole pint in a sitting. There’s not a freezer big enough to hold the amount he’d eat all winter.)
Failures aside, my main mission was–and still is– this: to encourage you to think about–and care about–what you’re eating.
If you’re eating meat, is it the best quality meat you can find? The best quality red meat will be organic and grass-finished. The best quality chicken will be organic and free-range. Why don’t you search your area for local farmers to buy meat from directly? It will take some legwork, but wouldn’t it be nice to know where exactly your meat is coming from?
The same goes for eggs and dairy. Try to find a local organic dairy farmer from who you can buy your dairy products.
If you’re eating fruit and vegetables (and you darned well better be), are you buying the organic version of those on the most recent EWG “dirty dozen” list?
To make life easier for you:
Here’s the 2010 Top 12 Dirtiest Produce (The 2011 list isn’t available yet):
1. Celery
2. Peaches
3. Strawberries
4. Apples
5. Blueberries (domestic)
6. Nectarines
7. Sweet bell peppers
8. Spinach
9. Cherries
10. Kale/collard greens
11. Potatoes
12. Grapes (Imported)
You should most definitely buy the organic version of these 12 fruits and vegetables.
I simply want you to treat your body with the respect it deserves. If you treat it well, it will treat you well by staying healthy and happy.
Speaking of which, and as I’ve previously mentioned, I’ve had my share of health challenges over the past few months. It’s obvious to me that I wasn’t treating my body the way it needed to be treated. It was pissed and it was letting me know it was pissed by harboring an evil germ in my lungs for months. In an attempt to make amends with my body, I’ve started a 21-day vegan eating plan and I’m making the time to stop and really listen to what my body needs. One of the things that my body is screaming for is a massage, so I’m getting an hour-long massage on Saturday!
I also reviewed my food diary to search for a clue as to what I’d been doing wrong nutritionally and I saw that I hadn’t been eating nearly enough vegetables. Especially leafy greens, which are crucial for healthy living.
So, last week I bought a huge bunch of kale, an amazingly nutritious and health-supporting vegetable. I had planned to use it for some of the recipes supplied by PCRM, but since I’ve started eating vegan, I’ve done my own meal planning.
Yesterday I decided to use about 3/4 of the bunch of kale for Mama Pea’s BBQ kale chip recipe (yum!) and the other 1/4 for a raw kale salad recipe that I first ate shortly after I registered at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition.
(Unfortunately, I can’t recall who posted the recipe on the online education forum nearly 4 years ago! Give me a break! I can hardly remember what I did yesterday.)
Anyway, it was my first experience with kale, and as is the case with many first times, it was memorable. And in this case it’s a good memory… unlike some of my other “firsts.” You know, like the first time I tried eating a scallop. Blech. Bad memory. Bad.
Energizing and Citrusy Kale Salad with Avocado
Ingredients
A good-sized bunch of kale, thoroughly rinsed, leaves torn into bite-sized pieces, or cut chiffonade style
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 avocado, diced
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
2 clementines (or oranges), peeled and separated into segments
Juice from two oranges
Directions
1. Place the washed kale into a large bowl. Add the teaspoon of sea salt and with your hands “massage” the salt into the kale. Do this for 2 minutes until the leaves start turning a deeper shade of green and feel softer. Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty. I’ve found that I truly love using my hands as a food prep tool – kneading dough, rolling chocolate truffles, massaging kale. It’s awesome.
2. To the softened kale, add the diced avocado, sunflower seeds, orange segments and orange juice. Mix all together with your hands.
3. Eat and enjoy!
You can add whatever you want to the massaged kale. I think grapefruit and grapefruit juice would be a delicious substitute for the oranges. You could add apples, fennel, red onions, celery, blueberries, chickpeas, shredded carrots, nuts, olive oil…I mean, the possibilities are endless.
I honestly feel a tingly, energizing surge a few minutes after I eat this salad. A feeling very similar to another first time experience. You know, driving the car for the first time by myself. Wha-hoo!
Try this salad. Kale season is now through early spring.
Energizing and Citrusy Kale Salad with Avocado
Enjoy your Tuesday!
Freakin’ Josh Groban: Part Two
January 6, 2011 § 2 Comments
I have no idea why or how Josh Groban has become a fixture in my life or why I keep finding reasons to blog about him, but I just saw this video on Dooce and it made me laugh. So I thought I’d share it with you.
Josh, Josh, Josh. Weeks ago you made me cry, and today you made me laugh. Do you know the power you have?!?
So Far, So Good and Spicy Roasted Chickpeas
January 5, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Hello~
I hope you’re having a fantastic first week of 2011! Do you still have a “fresh start” buzz, or has it already worn off ? I hope you still have it. Ideally, we should wake up each morning with a fresh start buzz, regardless of whether it’s the first week of January or the last week of December. Am I right? That’s a rhetorical question. Of course I’m right.
So, as I mentioned in my last post, I’m removing dairy from my diet for 21 days with the hope that doing so will help me finally kick this bug that’s been plaguing me since early fall. It’s going pretty well so far. I’ve come to realize that I haven’t been eating a whole lot of dairy lately. I do miss milk in my coffee, and I’m sure I’ll be wanting a piece of pizza on Friday night, but for the most part I haven’t felt deprived in the least.
Here’s a sampling of what I’ve eaten these last few days:
Breakfast
Oatmeal with banana, peanut butter, golden raisins and cinnamon; Sprouted grain raisin toast with peanut butter and sliced banana.
Coffee with almond milk
Snacks
Lara bars, apples, vegan macaroons, blueberries, roasted chickpeas with jerk seasoning*, Naked green superfood juice, dairy free dark chocolate, pretzels
Lunch
Veggie burger with avocado, hummus and spinach on sprouted grain toast; Leftover brown rice with Daiya, avocado and roasted chickpeas; Vegetarian burrito bowl at Chipotle
Dinner
Vegan tamale, brown rice with sautéed onions, garlic and broccoli; Whole wheat pasta with baby spinach and marinara
Hot tamale
Frozen hot tamales
Roasted chickpeas with brown rice, avocado and daiya
(*I’m a fan of the roasted chickpeas! To make them, I opened a can of chickpeas, dumped them in a strainer and rinsed them off, dried them with paper towels and then tossed them with some olive oil before roasting them at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. When I took them out, I added sea salt and pepper and plopped them into my bowl of rice, avocado and Daiya (I gave Daiya another shot, but I’m still not crazy about it). I had quite a few leftover chickpeas that didn’t fit into my rice bowl, so to spice them up a bit I sprinkled on some Jamaican Jerk Seasoning. Spicy, salty, crunchy…a really tasty upgrade from potato chips or pretzels thanks to the protein and fiber in the chickpeas.)
So. So far, so good. PCRM provides a daily menu, but I’ve been using what I already have in the house and improvising. I’m going to the grocery store tomorrow and plan to pick up ingredients for some new vegan recipes that PCRM has supplied. I definitely need more leafy greens.
Have you made any changes this week with the hope of improving your health? How is it going?
I’ll leave you with a link to today’s Daily Candy video featuring Dr. Frank Lipman. I’m not too familiar with Dr. Lipman, but from what I’ve seen and read, he seems to support ”my” type of eating (whole, organic food). If anything, he gives some good grocery shopping tips!
