Dan Dan Mian

This is probably one of my favorite recipes thus far, but then again it doesn't take very much Asian food to sway me. This also happens to be one of the quickest and easiest recipes as well, and I can easily see this becoming a lunch time staple from now on. I've only eaten hours ago and I'm already craving another bowl.

Dan Dan Mian

Don't ask me what the name means, by the way. I haven't a clue.

Basically all you have to do is boil some soba noodles noodles for 4 minutes. Soba noodles are made of buckwheat, but mine had yam as well. One bunch, or about 3.5-4 ounces, of noodles is one generous serving.

Soba Noodles

Next, in a small dish you'll want to mix up the sauce. I used 1/2 teaspoon of chili paste and 2 teaspoons of rice wine vinegar. Then I added enough soy sauce to dilute the spiciness to the level I wanted. Low sodium soy sauce is always the way to go if you are using more than a teaspoon.

The chili paste and rice wine vinegar came from an Asian market.
The soy sauce and sesame seeds came from Food Lion.

One the noodles are done, drain them and return them to the pot. Dump the sauce over top and stir (you'll have to play around to get the amount of sauce right--I ended up having to use extra soy sauce). Serve them with green onion and sesame seeds on top.



So much awesomeness in such a little bowl...

This recipe also called for pickled cabbage on top but I didn't have any. Maybe next time!

Too Pretty to Eat (Almost)

I didn't end up having time to eat any dinner last night, but I was able to make my super delicious lunch consisting of a Balsamic Zucchini Sandwich. I've already posted this recipe, but I just want to share the beauty once more...

Balsamic Zucchini Sandwich
*angels singing*

Quinoa and Red Bean Salad

This was my lunch for day seven, and man was it refreshing and delicious.

Pita Bread, Spinach & Garlic Hummus, and Quinoa & Red Bean Salad

This is pretty much the perfect meal for a warm summer's day, and required minimal cooking. All I had to do was simmer some quinoa on low heat for 25 minutes, chop the veggies, and stir everything together.

The salad contained:

1 diced tomato
1 diced yellow squash
4 green onions
2 napa cabbage leaves, finely sliced
1/2 cup of rinsed red beans
1/2 cup corn

Combine all of these ingredients with one cup of cooked quinoa and then toss with 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar and half a cup of Salsa Verde. I'm really glad I decided not to toss out that salsa the other day--a hint of those tangy flavors worked really well with this salad. You could always buy a jar of salsa if you don't have any tomatillos (or patience) to make it yourself.

One of the most beautiful dishes thus far!

Perfect Portobello Burger

This was my lunch for day six of the 21-Day Weight Loss Kickoff. Carla, Helen, and I are going out to dinner at supposedly very nice Asian food buffet tonight, so I decided to keep lunch light and skip the Sweet Potato Fries (again, argh!). This recipe was quick, easy, and small enough to be a nice sized portion snack, so it was the perfect choice.

While I did really like this sandwich, it didn't really photograph very well. The whole wheat bun was dark brown, the portobello was black, the caramelized onions were dark brown, and the lettuce was a very dark purple. Not to mention that the whole thing got kind of soggy and messy immediately. So, unfortunately, no pictures for this one.

I was a little nervous about that great big mushroom since I had never had one before. I love mushrooms, but I recently got a bag of shitakes that were infested with mushroom fly maggots (which you could not tell by looking, only breaking into) so I'm a little weird about the larger ones now--who knows what nasty surprises could be hiding inside! I ended up breaking this one in half once to inspect for any holes, and it turned out to be sound. In the end there was nothing to worry about at all, and I thoroughly enjoyed the mushroom.

The portobello went in a pan with a quarter inch of water, some halved garlic cloves, salt, and smoked paprika. It was done when the water had completely evaporated. I slapped that on a toasted whole wheat bun with the other ingredients and that puppy was good to go. The sandwich originally had roasted red pepper on it as well, but I picked that off half way through because it didn't really fit and it covered up the mushroom flavor too much. I thought I would miss some sort of condiment on mushroom burger as well, but it turned out just fine without it. I would most likely make this again.

This is what I imaged the Perfect Portobello Burger should look like.
Picture taken from http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/portobello_mushroom_burger/.

This morning's breakfast was alright. I made the scheduled pancakes with strawberries and Caribbean Passion Smoothie. The pancakes, being only whole wheat flour, soy milk, and baking powder, were not at all delicious. Last time the mango added some sweetness while the lime added flavor, whereas this time it was basically like cardboard. I ended up eating the strawberries off the top and drenching them in maple syrups, and even then I couldn't even finish the two of them. Next time the menu calls for plain pancakes, I think I'll add a tablespoon or two of cane sugar and some vanilla extract.

The smoothie was interesting. I almost didn't like it at first, but it grew on me over the course of the morning. I bought a smoothie blender yesterday with a travel lid so that all you have to do is blend, pop on the top, unscrew the base, and go. It was very convenient as I was rushing to get ready for my 8 am Organic Chemistry. The smoothie consisted of one banana, one orange, one mango, some pineapple, a cup of soy milk, and some cinnamon. I forgot to freeze the fruit last night so I had to blend some ice with it as well. Pretty tasty, and very filling!



This is actually the Mango Spice Smoothie, but the Caribbean Passion was almost the same except that it had cinnamon in place of serrano pepper.

Day 5

Today didn't go quite as planned.

This morning's menu included a Breakfast Burrito, which I made along with (what was supposed to be yesterday's) a Mango Spice Smoothie. The burrito was filled with fried potato, onion, and kale, and it was quite bland. Perhaps some pico de gallo could liven it up a bit? The smoothie has the word "spice" in the name because it literally included a hot pepper. It wasn't bad, but it isn't a flavor combination that I will be using again.

Potato & Kale Breakfast Burrito

I had a lab for my Fisheries class today which didn't get out until almost evening. That, plus the fact that breakfast was very filling, contributed to the fact that I didn't have lunch today. I was actually supposed to go shopping yesterday but didn't have the time, so I didn't really have the ingredients for today's recipes anyways. I ended up going to Kroger's, but forgot to get something for tonight so I just ended up eating odds and ends like toast and hummus with cucumber. I decided to try some rather expensive vegan dark chocolate sandwich cookies from the store, which turned out to taste wonderful and made an excellent impromptu dessert.

So, sorry for the slacking--I promise to be more on track with the meal plan tomorrow!

To be honest, I'm getting a little sick of the Latin flavors. I feel like I'm getting mostly the same variations of rice and beans with salsa, and am getting bored with it. What I really want are some good Asian flavors. Where is my morning bowl of miso? There are quite a few of these types of recipes later on in the book, so I briefly considered switching around some days. I decided to be patient and just wait it out, however. I'll be happy to delve into some curry, ginger, mushroom, and rich umami flavors in a few weeks.

Due to the fact that I don't own a scale, I thought I would keep track of weight loss by taking measurements, which I recorded on day three. My reading for today asked me not to do that, so I headed out after class to purchase a bathroom scale. While testing it out in the kitchen when I returned home it read 252.8 pounds. I'm normally about 255. I'd say that 2.2 pounds in five days aren't too bad of results! I'll be weighing myself every Sunday and measuring progress that way. This is starting to get exciting!

Not Every One is a Winner

Most of the recipes thus far have been astonishingly good, and I haven't missed meat or diary at all. Every once in a while though, things just don't work out.

Lunch today wasn't terrible, but it wasn't amazing either. I made a Sun-dried Tomato and Hummus Wrap, which I ate along with the the last of my fruit as well as some chips and salsa.

Sun-Dried Tomato & Hummus Wrap

Even though the ingredients were good, it just didn't come together. I think it was the fact that there just wasn't enough filling--too much tortilla, too little flavorful goodness. It also wasn't very filling, so I was hungry in only two hours.

Sometimes the whole...

...ISN'T greater than the sum of the parts.

This pales in comparison to dinner though. What a fiasco. First, the Quick Black Bean Chili. It tasted horrible, and wasn't like chili at all. It was a pile of black beans with some mushy tomatoes clinging to it with far too much bottled chili powder taste. I took one bite and threw the entire pot out, which makes me really sad to do (good thing I made only two servings worth). It even looked terrible.

Next, the Tomatillo Salsa. I was very excited about this because I have never tried tomatillos before. First off, some of the tomatillos had bugs in them. Second, they were oddly sticky, which was a little disturbing to me. I can't really describe the texture. Are they always like that? Next, the recipe said to halve them and then simmer until they turn into sauce. They didn't turn into anything except for very soft and hot tomatillo halves. I ended up using the food processor to make it more of a "salsa" consistency. Also, the recipe called for a ton of onion and garlic--an entire onion for less than two cups of salsa! I scaled it back a little. When I tasted the salsa with a spoon after pulsing I was not impressed at all. It was sour, and I couldn't imagine what to pair it with. It wasn't terrible though, so I decided to see how it would go on the rice.

Oh, the rice... The knobs on our stove are counter-logical, and so the three of us are guilty of accidentally turning on the wrong burner all the time. Well, I meant to have the rice on low and the salsa on med-high. I accidentally put it the other way around. It was only moments before the entire apartment was thick with burnt smoke. All three of us drug out fans and ran around flapping our arms, magazines, potholders, and whatever else we could find at the smoke. Even with the doors and windows open I can still smell it a bit, hours later. The rice didn't catch on fire, but it was close. Thank goodness the fire alarm for our building didn't go off. I'm not sure if that poor pot is salvageable now though.

Suffice to say, I was a bit put out by all of this. I had a Wildlife Society meeting to go to at 7 pm, so I decided just to get dinner out. Vegetable lo mein and a diet coke from Happy Wok might not be the best diet food, but it was vegan and I was tired and hungry. I was actually feeling pretty bad about the whole thing, thinking this whole endeavor was a waste of time and stupid of me, but a little smoke-free air and food in my belly soon turned my attitude around. That, and pretending to be an emperor penguin and frog noises at the meeting. All's well that ends well, I suppose.

Day 4

Here is the menu for day four of the 21-Day Weight Loss Kick Off:

Breakfast:
Mango Spice Breakfast Smoothie (recipe)
Oatmeal with blueberries

Lunch:
Hummus and Sun-Dried Tomato Wrap (recipe)
Low-fat baked tortilla chips
Fresh apple

Dinner:
Quick Black Bean Chili (recipe)
Rice Topped with Tomatillo Sauce (recipe)
Warmed corn tortillas

I will probably be making quite a few changes today. I was so bogged down with homework deadlines last night that I didn't have any time to cook and just ended up eating my leftover Rustic Tomato Soup. This morning, instead of the smoothie I am going to make the Bananas in Berry Artesia recipe (which is basically the same ingredients in a different form). The tiny food processor we have isn't cutting it, so I'm going to have to go out and find a blender.

Today's going to be a busy one, so forgive me if I don't post until this evening.

Balsamic Zucchini Sandwich

I have actually been feeling much better today, but not 100% normal yet. I'm a little less tired too, so maybe the energy boost is starting to kick in. Not sure yet. I had a hard time not taking a nap this afternoon, so I'm obviously not that energetic yet. Hopefully that changes soon.

Breakfast this morning consisted of oatmeal with green apples, toast, and pineapple. I was supposed to have Citrus Sage Oatmeal, but I couldn't get all of the ingredients I needed for that. So, apples it was, and I needed to keep plugging away at all that diced pineapple as well. I hadn't really had plain oatmeal before, and accidentally got quick oats. They were pretty gross, but once I got the apple in there and doused it with cane sugar and soy milk it wasn't too bad. Not really all that picture-worthy though.

The Balsamic Zucchini Sandwich was my lunch for day three. I was astounded by how delicious this sandwich was. I mindlessly scarfed it in about three bites just because it was so yummy. And the really cool thing is that I am pretty sure that you could put just about anything on it and it would still be amazing. Next time I am thinking avocado... I was supposed to have a Artichoke and Tomato Salad with this, but I couldn't get all of the ingredients for that either, so watermelon it was.

Balsamic Zucchini Sandwich

The first thing you are going to want to do it prep the zucchini. I used one entire large zucchini to make the sandwich. Begin by slicing it long ways into strips. I was able to put my mandolin to work on this job (with the hand guard, of course... *nudge nudge* Rich).

Sliced Zucchini

If you've got any other veggies you want on the sandwich you can slice them up this way too. The next step is to toast your bread. I used a 12 grain bread that I like, but you could use a ciabatta roll or just about anything.



Layer One: 12 Grain Bread

 

 



The next layer is going to be whatever condiment you'd like. I used a generous smear of low-fat spinach and garlic hummus, and that was pretty much the cherry on top. I would definitely go with hummus again, but if you aren't sticking with a vegan diet mayo could be good as well. The book suggested red pepper hummus, and I bet that'd be nice too.

Layer Two: Spinach & Garlic Hummus

Next is the zucchini. What you do it saute it on medium-high with balsamic vinegar (again, I used red wine vinegar) and garlic. It only takes about a minute on each side, and you have to be careful about everything burning to the pan. I was able to do my zucchini strips in three batches, and it went so fast that I didn't have time to take any pictures. Then pile it on the bread.

Layer Three: Balsamic Sauteed Zucchini

From here you can do whatever you'd like. I was thinking about putting a roasted red pepper, but then I changed my mind. I sliced a fresh tomato to put on my sandwich, and was very glad I did. You could also do avocado, sprouts, fresh baby spinach, raw onion, and much more. I bet that even apple slices could be good.

Layer Four: Tomato

Next you are going to want to spice it up with some herbs. I used some lovely fresh basil that I got at the farmers' market. This is where you can really be imaginative with flavor profiles. Don't forget salt and pepper as well!

Layer Five: Fresh Basil

And last but not least, the final slice of bread. To be honest, I would probably do another layer of hummus next time just because it was so good.

Layer Six: Bread

There you are. This sandwich was so good that if this was put beside a BLT with real mayo and thick slices of bacon, and I only got to choose one, I honestly don't know which one I would choose. Yeah, that good. Crazy, I know.

This actually reminds me of a recipe in a cookbook that my G'ma sent me. It is from Cuisine Lite's Fresh & Fabulous magazine, and is called a "high-rise" sandwich. Their's looks pretty good too, especially since it looks like they went crazy with the cheese.

"High-Rise" Sandwich from Cuisine Lite's Fresh & Fabulous

Day 3

The menu for today is:

Breakfast:
Citrus and Sage Oatmeal (recipe)
Multigrain Toast
Orange Slices

Lunch:
Balsamic Zucchini Sandwich (recipe)
Artichoke Heart and Tomato Salad (recipe)

Dinner:
Red Beans and Rice with Collard Greens (recipe)
Bananas in Berries Artesia (recipe)

I am very, very excited about this last recipe, the Berry Artesia. Supposedly it is a dessert from New Orleans. If you know me at all, then you know I am all about dessert!

I do have some self control though. Carla was so sweet yesterday and brought home a cookie cake for us all. I'm sure it had milk, eggs, and butter galor. Alas, I could not partake. I told Carla that I'd have to appreciate it with my heart, not my stomach.

Sweet, beautiful cookie cake...

So yes, I am very excited to have a vegan dessert. I have watched the show Cupcake Wars a few times, and there is a girl that won twice with completely vegan recipes, and that is over top of normal recipes with butter and the works. I may have to look into how she makes those. It's making me hungry just thinking about it...

Carla, Darren, and Helen hanging out enjoying the cookie cake.

Caffeine Withdrawals

I am a big coffee drinker, but I can't take it black. I like mine all doctored up and froofy--Starbucks fraps are my best friend. Unfortunately, all of those things that make coffee so delicious and appealing are made of dairy. And without these things, I'd rather not have coffee at all. Snobbish, I know.

I haven't been drinking any soda either. Technically I could drink diet soda, but since I'm doing this whole natural foods regiment, it seems logical to give chemical sugar substitutes the boot as well.

Which means that I am having some crazy caffeine withdrawals today. At first I thought I hadn't gotten enough sleep, so I was really tired. Then I started feeling terrible, so I thought I must be getting sick. But then I started getting grump and depressed, and I knew it must be something else. The good news is that it will probably pass quickly. I am determined to believe that this is a good thing, and that I'll be better off without all of the extra stimulation.

Another thing I've noticed, and it seems to be a trend, is that I get the hiccups after every bulky vegetable meal. And these aren't your normal hiccups--these are drawn out, painful, obnoxiously high-pitched and loud hiccups. Helen actually came out of her room last night to ask if I was okay. It's not a big deal, just something I've noticed. Like many people, I have a hiatal hernia which is sometimes irritated if I eat too fast. Perhaps these foods, such as kale, just have a hard time passing into the stomach and disturb my diaphragm. Who knows.

For lunch today I was supposed to have a BST (bacon, sprout, tomato) sandwich with baked sweet potato wedges, but I couldn't find any fake bacon at the store. I think it is called tempeh, and I have no idea what that is. Instead I polished off some leftovers. I had some watermelon salad, my last mango pancake, and the caldo verde that I decided not to chuck out last night. The sweet potato fries will have to wait for a little later.

Dinner should be interesting tonight, especially given that I'm not a big fan of tomato soup (though I've never had home made, I suppose). Stay tuned!

Day 2

Day 1 had its ups and downs. On to day two!

Here is the menu for the day:

Breakfast
Costa Rican Rice and Beans (Gallo Pinto) (recipe)
Sliced pineapple and mango
Pumpernickle toast with orange jam

Lunch
BST (Bacon, Sprout, and Tomato Sandwich) (recipe)
Sweet Potato Fries (recipe)

Dinner
Rustic Tomato Soup (recipe)
Salad of mixed greens with Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette (recipe)
Slice of toasted sourdough bread

Another of the things that I really enjoy about the 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart book is that there are daily readings. Today Dr. Barnard talked a little about the lack of meat and asked how I was feeling. Today I am supposed to have increased energy and improved digestion. Negative on both fronts. The energy thing might be my fault--I didn't go to bed till almost midnight last night and then had my alarm set for 4 am. I felt so miserable when I got up and started working on homework that I pretty much said, "Screw this," and went back to bed, missing my Organic Chem and Economics classes. It is 11am now, and I've just finished breakfast, but I still feel like I'd give anything to go back to bed (I won't, of course). As for digestion, that's always been a big problem for me. I have IBS, and just about anything can trigger it. Even my vegan breakfast this morning didn't settle so well. But it is only day two after all, so we'll just have to wait and see.

Seven Layer Garden Nachos

Okay, so maybe this isn't what they're really called, but I couldn't find blue chips and it seemed more to me like nachos than a salad. This was my lunch for day one.

"Blue Corn Chip Salad", A.K.A. Seven Layer Garden Nachos

I thought for sure that I was going to miss my normal fixin's such as cheese and sour cream, but let me tell you--I was wrong. Very wrong. This just might be some of the best nachos I've ever had, and that is without and meat, cheese, or dairy! Mom, you'd go nuts over these.

The first layer of the nachos is the chips themselves. Since one of the rules of the 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart is to reduce oils, I had to get baked chips. There was only one type of baked tortilla chip that Krogers carried (and this is an incredibly large and diverse store), and it was not blue. I ended up getting Baked! Tostitos Scoops.

Layer One: Chips

The second layer is composed of lettuce. I got red leaf lettuce, which is simultaneously beautiful and tasty. The recipe said to tear it into bit size pieces, but instead I removed the thicker stem pieces and then did a chiffonade cut. We eat with our eyes first, and just looking at those purple little swirls was making me hungry!

Layer Two: Lettuce

The third layer is black beans. I just got a cheap can of the store brand packed in water. I used half of a 15 oz can on my nachos.

Layer Three: Beans

Layer four is a fresh diced Roma tomato. The recipe called for half of one, but mine was so tiny I decided to use the whole thing.

Layer Four: Tomato

The fifth layer is a half cup of any type of salsa. I went with a jar of ChiChi's mild salsa, and that was quite nice. Obviously if you like it hot, go nuts. One option for the future is to skip the fourth layer of tomato and just make this layer a nice heap of fresh pico de gallo. Yum!

Layer Five: Salsa

Layer six is roast red pepper. The recipe called for one and a half peppers, and that sounded like an awful lot to me. I ended up opting for only one pepper, which still seemed like too much but ended up being just perfect. Make sure that these are packed in water with no added oils. I julienned them, but you can dice them however you like.

Layer Six: Roasted Red Pepper

The last layer is comprised of any toppings you might want. I used unprocessed pepitas, which the book suggested. I also decided to put a little fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime. I'm glad I did, because I feel like it really elevated all of those already delicious flavors to another level. And, ta-da! Observe your masterpiece.

Layer Seven: Toppings (Cilantro, Pepitas, Lime Juice)

The menu for today also included a watermelon salad tossed with lime juice. I got the cutest little melon from the farmers' market, which is the perfect size for just me. I also got a bunch of fresh mint at the market, and decided to chop a few leaves up very finely and add that to the watermelon salad as well. Remember about eating with your eyes? Here's a close-up:

Watermelon Salad with Mint and Lime

This was actually so much food that I couldn't finish it. I had about half a cup of random veggies left on my plate and had to put most of my half cup of watermelon back into the container as well. That's okay though, the watermelon will be a good snack between classes tomorrow. The only hard part about this diet thus far has been eating the recommended amounts of food! They weren't kidding when they talked about "real" portions. Perhaps dinner will have to be rather later tonight... Also, if any of you readers happen to be in my neck of the woods, please stop by--there is more than plenty of deliciousness to go around. I feel bad that I keep shoving it at Helen when she's not much of an eater to being with.