I must have been Italian

We always joke that M must have been Italian in a past life b/c she loves cheese and breads and all the wonderful starches that we think of when we think Italian food. And I'm pretty sure I inherited that past life (I keep typing pasta instead of past and have to keep deleting!). This is gonna be short and sweet, b/c if you know anything about me, you know I'm not a night owl. So right to the food!

I realized once I covered the noodles with sauce and cheese that you couldn't tell they were lasagna rolls, haha, oh well, it was fun. The sauce was from a jar (I was going semi homemade a la Sandra Lee) but the sauce was Harris Teeter and I can't remember what it was called (will try to find it) and it had a great spiciness to it! Usually nothing tastes spicy to me but this was good.

I should be good and give you the nutrition information but I can't find the jar and as usual this recipe could be made in all sorts of ways. This was my first time using cottage cheese for the majority of the cheese filling and I have to say, I couldn't taste a difference, so sneak in some healthiness in your life! You save yourself saturated fat, but be warned, you will more than double your sodium intake, so pick your battles. Using part skim or low fat dairy products also helps shave a lot of calories (especially in the fat department) and in a dish this mixed you can't tell. If you really don't want to give up all your whole fat cheese (sometimes if you're doing like a cheese plate, never go for skim) then do half skim and half whole milk! Something is better than nothing. And adding more veggies to a dish never hurt anyone :)

"Rice" & Beans

Nothing much to mention today, gave up on walking and studying and went for a run instead :) Over a week of just walking and studying and running feels like the best present ever. It also helps my music has entered the 21st century!

I'm all about not wasting food and the half a head of cauliflower kept staring at me from the fridge. I'm running low on food ideas (still haven't repeated!) but my protein sources are also becoming limited in the house (I refuse to go grocery shopping until all the vegetables lying around are gone, this might take awhile b/c those silly cucumbers). Not that I'm sure M&D are testing my food for a balanced plate, but I care!

I finally got around to trying to make my own tortillas (more about that later), but first I want to talk about my filler. I won't have nutrition facts b/c I'm not entirely sure how many servings I ended up with...sorry!

This is a great dish by itself as a salad, wrapped into a burrito or on the side of some cheese quesadillas. Feel free to change up the ingredients or add more spices based on your preference. I think I got about 6 cups. If you want to get crazy, make it a filler for tacos.

I've heard making corn tortillas is very easy, but I never knew just how easy (it's just the process of flattening them enough that's tricky). This recipe comes from the lean green bean. I used only half the salt amount and I think it tasted fine. I also only had corn meal so I ground that a bit through the food processor to get it to be as fine as corn flour. I doubled the recipe but only made 8 tortillas total (her recipe makes 8 per recipe) b/c my small ones made the ittiest little tortillas ever and I wanted tacos. Will have to figure out how much I can flatten before I tear them apart. I used plastic wrap as a base and a square of parchment paper for the top to flatten the balls out, and I think the parchment paper sticks to the wheels less. Once these bad boys were done, I topped with the "rice" and beans, leftover brussels sprout salad and some hot sauce :) Yum!

I love leftovers!

Traiteur

Cajun/Creole for a man or woman who is a traditional healer. Why I want you to know this? B/c apparently I'm supposed to know this. When people give me that confused look when I say I'm studying to be a dietitian, it might have something to do with that. I'm all for being well-rounded and knowing lots of information pertinent to helping people but it's stuff like that and mellorine (ice cream made with vegetable oil instead of butter fat- I don't believe it's been manufactured since rationing went out the window during WWII) that make me lay my head on my study notes and wonder if this is all going to get in my head.

Clearly, I'm going to remember all the really weird obscure things and forget things like sarcopenia. But, knock on wood, at least if I pass, I'll be very very knowledgeable in all things random and slightly food related.

Picking up groceries today, went to Harris Teeter (HT) in the new shopping plaza by Turf Valley (has anyone else seen all those changes?? I want to check out the restaurant that has the outdoor fireplace, so nice and cozy looking- maybe not in this 90+ heat, but you know, when it's cooler).

Anyway, this sign caught my eye. There's painted white stripes right by the entrance to HT and you pull your car up to this sign, push the button and an HT personal shopper will bring your groceries out to you! I actually like this more than delivery b/c I could do it on my way home. Haha, I'm relishing suburbia. I think I was born for the suburbs.

It feels like there's grocery stores everywhere now though, but I suppose everyone wants one in walking distance or something. It's hot here, did I mention that? Like too hot for me to turn on the oven hot. So lunch got cobbled together (I've sort of fallen flat on cooking lunch and dinner, all you homemakers out there, bravo to making 3 meals a day).

No oven, no problem. My usual go-to tuna salad mix-in, Greek yogurt, is all out, so I used hummus to make the tuna salad (go for it! especially those protein happy ones out there). Topped with some good sharp cheddar and broiled in the mini oven (I know, I said it was too hot, but the little one doesn't count ;). On the side I put together a raw Brussels sprout salad- food process the Brussels sprouts (make sure to get the core, grated parmesan, onion, hardboiled egg, and a bit of dressing (olive oil + lemon juice + pepper) and wha-la, salad!

In case you haven't figured out my love for the Vitamix yet, I blended frozen slices of a super ripe yellow peach with some of the vanilla soy milk to get this nice frozen yogurt/sorbet/sherbet thing. If I was really ready for my test, I would know what to call this based on its ice/fat/milk content. Haha. Hopefully, tomorrow! Stay cool.

Sleeping in

I slept until 6:30 this morning! To most of you, that probably sounds ridiculous and not like sleeping in at all, but when my average wake up time this month has been 3 or 4 am, I'm pretty durn proud of myself. This also means I didn't get in my usual 2 hours of walking around the basement listening to my Inman review, but I'm not gonna complain. It's butterflies and rainbows today :)

It was kind of chilly this morning when I chose not to workout and attempt (aka, fell asleep) to read the review notes and I had a hankering for soup. I figured I would just take the can of tomato soup in the pantry from eons ago (more on that) and just add some pasta and veggies and have it all prepped and ready for lunch. Luckily, I checked the expiration date (remember that whole canned food lasts for a year?) and it was expired TWO years ago. Bah humbug. So that meant plan B, make my own soup. Haha, plan B in normal brain logic would have been to think of something else to make. But I had this huge thing of cherry tomatoes from Costco that were ready to call it quits and there was no lettuce or cheese to make salad, so I figured I'd try my hand at soup. I'd made potato and leek soup once (yum yum!) but that was with a broth. Luckily, s4 had left behind some flavor packets (which I didn't realize until after I put a packet in, that it too was expired, but only by almost a year...so only sort of going to make everyone sick...). Anyone else have a Vitamix? I'm so happy the day we decided to get M&D one, that meant I got to blend up everything to wonderful creamy dreamy smoothness.

 Back to cooking, M&D came home from golf and decided they had to get yardwork done in the middle of the day, aka, I hauled outside and cut the grass (thanks for the vitamin D intake). By the time we got back inside, we were sweating like whatever animal sweats a lot (b/c I've been told pigs do not sweat like that) and soup was not going to happen until later. Since the Vitamix is so wonderful I whipped up some healthy ice cream. I don't know if it's b/c the "ice cream" is green but this tastes just like the melon bar popsicles we used to get as kids at the Korean grocery store. M agrees with me, so it's not just my crazy head.

Once the ice cream was out of the way and we were all showered and a bit cooler (summer time always means sweating after showers...I'm looking forward to fall and pumpkin everything!) it was finally time for soup!

This soup is definitely cobbled together from all the odds and ends hanging around in the kitchen, so I'm not going to have a recipe for you guys. But if you ever have the random assortment of veggies that I did here's kind of a breakdown of how this soup came about:

Dice 1/4 medium onion and saute in a large pot with olive oil and garlic until translucent.
Add about 2 pints tomatoes (I had cherry tomatoes, don't worry about having to peel them) and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil then transfer contents to a blender (Vitamix!) and blend until smooth.
Pour contents back into the pot and add black pepper,salt, vegetables of your choice (I had leftover roasted cauliflower and corn and frozen mixed greens) + 1 cup milk + 1 flavor packet (I had vegetable Swanson)
Bring pot to a boil.
Meanwhile, boil some pasta in a separate pot and rinse in cold water. When you're ready for soup, add to the amount of soup you will eat (or else your noodles will soak up all the liquid and become bulgy like chef boyarde ones).

As I'm always worried about how much salt I'm adding, I did minimal salt and topped the soup with parmesan cheese instead. Much tastier :) And aren't the Seattle Space Noodle pastas so cute?? It's been a long time coming for those to get cooked up! This was a great recipe to use up some of the ingredients in the house. And now I have an idea for dinner tonight (or maybe lunch tomorrow...depends on how full we all are from lunch, haha). Happy cooking~

Rain, rain, rain go away

It's been raining all day...sprinkle sprinkle, drizzle drizzle, pour pour. I think it's finally giving up now, but it's made for a very mind numbing studying (circles in the basement).

Peaches were on sale at the new Whole Foods in Columbia (69 cents/lb!) so of course, in true M fashion, we bought a case. Lol. And since it's been raining and there's only so much studying I can do (read- until I fall asleep) baking or cooking had to happen. I got the cooking part down, and M&D wanted to finish off the Popeyes chicken so they ended up with dessert!

I snagged this Upside-down Peach Cake recipe with some changes from Taste of Home. Most of the changes were due to my inability to work with a recipe as is, and with the lack of ingredients in the house. I got to use up the rest of the honey lemon butter from the zucchini bread and it actually worked great in this (the lemon rind really works well), but it's not necessary. I was also trying to make it healthier since no matter what I do, M&D will eat it all within seconds- so I subbed out most of the butter for Greek yogurt and ran out of sugar so used less. The cake is actually more bready but it's got a nice dense tangyness to it. I also didn't bother with peeling the peaches because I figured it would get softened in the baking process enough that I wouldn't notice (unlike apples, I would always peel apples for pie).

As usual, the nutrition facts are per my calculations and may not be exact.

Happy Saturday! I hope your day is dry and tasty :)

A little of this, a little of that

I think I may have gotten a bit carried away at the grocery store with the fruits and vegetables (not that the bushel of peaches and 40 ears of corn bought by M are helping matters). I hate wasting food, so this stuff is going to get prepped and eaten (not too sure about the cucs though, I'm really not a fan, any ideas?). I'm also trying to work through the things hanging around the pantry (did you know canned food is good for only a year? I mean, I guess a year is a long time, but still, sometimes that last can of tuna just doesn't want to go away). So today's lunch is a mish-mash of all things in the house. Case in point- the starch:

S4 left some food here after she moved from Cleveland to Boston and one was a package for fettucine alfredo (you don't even want to know the nutrition information). But M is a huge fan of cream sauces and I figured if I didn't add the butter and split the package in thirds (it's set for serving 2) no harm no foul, or at least less. Be warned, as I forgot, milk will foam and go crazy when it boils. But I cooked up the pasta per the directions (minus the butter) and then added some cherry tomatoes and parmesan cheese sprinkled on top (the pasta just looked so sad and colorless!).

To buffer the small pasta serving (which at 1/2 cup is technically a serving of grains, how sad), I wanted to up the veggies (and also get protein). Man, I need to stop studying for this RD exam, it's kind of infiltrating all food fun. But I roasted the carrot sticks again (with less oil this time, much better) and finally got to try roasted brussels sprouts with bacon (the turkey bacon from first Costco trip- Thanksgiving here we come!). Oven at 425F, sprinkle some salt and pepper and 20 minutes (stirring the veggies up at 10 minutes). Why does bacon cooking have to smell so much?

I actually think I get a better crisp to the brussels sprouts sans bacon, but M&D were happy campers. I'm just happy I got a nice balanced and super colorful meal cooked today :)

What's lurking in your pantry and can I come play in it?

Isn't it summer?

I think I've turned on the oven almost everyday since I've been home and I should really cut that out since I can sit absolutely still and sweat buckets. I just can't help it!

Baked up these bad boys into healthier fries. Carrots on the left and the enigmatic Korean sweet potato on the right. Preheat the oven to 425F, cut your vegetables into size of your choice (e.g. for the largest part of the carrot, I cut lengthwise 3x). Lightly toss in oil and salt and pepper (or whatever spices touch your fancy). Then bake for about 20 minutes (flip halfway through so they can brown evenly). My carrots were kind of limp, but I think it's b/c I got a bit carried away with the oil.

As promised, the black bean burger actually as a burger (does it still count as a burger if the protein isn't sandwiched between burger buns???). Some lettuce, melted cheddar cheese (Cabot seriously sharp!) and onions, and wha-la. Would have also been great with some guacamole or spiced mayonnaise, but didn't want to scare the parents too much.

A "dietitian" walks into a grocery store...

I have a problem...I suppose not really a problem, but a confession. They say never to go grocery shopping when you're hungry b/c you're liable to buy everything in sight b/c you want food NOW. Well, when I'm hungry and I'm in a grocery store I walk out with nothing. I mean nada, zilch, zip, zero. I'm so overwhelmed by the choices and I can never figure out what I'm in the mood for (sweet, savory, salty, chewy, crunchy, smooth, microwaveable, healthy, the litany goes on and on). So then I just wander and wander and just leave b/c it's better to make no choice than the wrong choice (at this point, feel free to think I'm slightly wacky, I would completely understand).

I'm not saying it makes any sense, but that's how I roll when I'm hungry (you should see me try to pick out a birthday card in the card aisle). But when I'm not hungry, man, I can go to town in a grocery store. I can wander for hours and ooh and ahh over all the fun products and buy a little of everything.

Case in point- Whole Foods opened today in Columbia and it was so much fun! Maybe because I can't remember the last time I was in a WF, but there was food to sample, and a beautiful cheese section, and pretty layouts, oh man, I want to go back tomorrow and check out the other aisles!

There was the olive bar and the pasta bar and the salad bar, so much food everywhere! Not that my unemployed self can afford any of the fun stuff, but it's nice to have a place that sells bulk (although Roots in Clarksville does that as well). And when I want to treat myself to something small, it's a great place to find something interesting (although could not find my Maine Root!).

Knew I was getting Indian in about 30 minutes so I resisted the urge to buy some sweets, but these all looked pretty amazing. I did find some Vermont beef jerky (finally got to try it!) and bought some Turkish dried figs. Gobble gobble drool :) I am a happy camper.

*I put dietitian in quotes b/c I can't call myself one yet, but hopefully soon!

Bring the bar home

Anyone ever had a crab dip pretzel? Based on where I've seen it and the recipes, I'm guessing it's a Maryland thing (go Maryland!). Looney's in CP was a favorite during happy hour, and even though the crab dip had a happy hour special, there was something decadent and deliriously delicious about soft salty pretzel heaped with cheesey crab dip (can you tell I'm completely obsessed with food yet?). I never knew buying crab meat was so expensive! We got a pound for $25 at Wegmans (love that place). This recipe is built off McCormick with Parmesan cheese and hot sauce added (b/c you can never have enough cheese or heat). This recipe could not be easier. We didn't get the easy pretzel kit (find it in the baking aisle) b/c we were too hungry, so added veggies, crackers, and chips to the side. Yum.
I typically troll social media at night before going to bed (so many no-no's about that statement) and came across this recipe I think on instagram. Zucchini Bread with Lemon Honey Butter from foodnetwork and since it's the season of overwhelming zucchini and I love bread, why not :) I don't know if it's b/c I only had olive oil, but the bread tastes slightly salty. Will fiddle with it again, but man, is this bread good fresh from the oven spread with the butter. It's quick and easy to make to, so no excuses!

Happy Monday, I'm off to study!

3 miles down, 10 to go

Got in my first run in awhile today, my heel is feeling a bit iffy, but I did this crazy thing of signing up for another half marathon next month...oy vey. Should be interesting.

So yesterday, M&D got invited out to dinner for tonight and they both said "we will be fasting until that dinner" which means it would be a rest day for me! Then M decided fasting between breakfast at 4 am and dinner at 5 pm was just a bit crazy and said she wanted lunch. Then after I had made this light but tasty lunch (and made just enough for two) D said he was hungry (and then I ended up with leftovers, fail!).

This recipe couldn't be simpler and it's great for a hot summer day when you don't want to turn the oven on. I had hardboiled eggs hanging out in the fridge + leftover julienned veggies from the spring rolls + leftover peanut sauce = perfect "asian" egg salad mix. I filled romaine lettuce up with it (b/c those are also hanging out in the fridge) and then wanted some sort of side to hold M and my bottomless stomach through til dinner (or at least my peach snack later in the day!)

I'm trying to convince M to let me buy regular sweet potatoes (the orange ones), but she doesn't understand and since it's their money, I will gladly use what's available. These are Korean sweet potatoes (I have no idea what their scientific name is, but that's how they're listed at the Lotte) that I peeled them cut into fry wedges. Tossed in olive oil, sprinkled with sea salt and then baked at 400F for about 30 minutes (I flipped them three times in that period). I love baked potatoes, if you find the sweet spot in your oven, usually at the lower racks, you get that nice crispy outside. I used the mini convection thing we have b/c there was no way I wanted to turn on the big oven with the heat! Happy Sunday! I have dinner to myself tonight, maybe pb&j??

Havin a little fiesta

*The nachos were gone before I could get a picture so this won't look as festive as it should. Plus, found out neither of my parents is fans of olives, so can't put those on dishes anymore...poop scoop.

Glorious composition and that's just M's fault

This is gonna be a quick and easy post- mostly got ideas from this recipe for Mexican Casserole. As all the groceries in the house are from Costco, the humongous bag of tortilla chips (La Abuelita) is starring at me. I like them, but I can't shouldn't eat the entire bag!

I worked with what I had and I wanted to downsize the recipe for 3. I cooked down onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, kidney beans, garlic, jalapeno peppers, and salsa in a pan and then loaded that on top of the crushed tortilla chips (just a handful to layer the bottom a couple times). I didn't have the sour cream or tomatoes so just topped with the cheese blend. Yum! Quick and easy, just the way I like it.

Got rave reviews from M, D is old-school Korean and requested whole garlic and kimchi with his...I guess I won't fault him for trying some fusion. Kor-mex? Mexi-kor? This took under 45 minutes start to finish and is pretty much the most adaptable recipe possible. Happy eating!

Meatless Friday :)

I haven't completely disowned the vegetarian lifestyle. It's actually much less of a headache b/c I don't have to worry about food safety. Plus, I can never tell if my meat is done!

Even though I made black bean patties (and froze a bunch), I actually cooked them up to cut into strips (kind of like tempeh) in order to use up my leftover tortilla wraps. I hate letting food go to waste, which is also why I couldn't let the zucchini hanging out in the kitchen from the garden go to waste!

I had two tortilla wraps left (the large ones), I cut the vine out of the romaine lettuce (also hanging out in the fridge) and added either perilla pesto or hummus (hummus by unanimous decision tasted better). A couple years ago s4 and I explored Nashville and tried this amazing veggie burger at pm (see my old post) that I never thought could be topped. But I might have gotten very close! This is loosely based on this recipe and all the tips on cooking and prepping are good to go. I would have followed the recipe exactly if I had any of the adobe and chipotle chili stuff. Roasting the black beans is genius and having nuts in the mix is also fantastic. "Awesome" just like he said. I can't wait to make actual burgers, I'm thinking some pepperjack cheese slices on top or maybe avocado and salsa will be perfect.

*A note on canned beans, thoroughly rinsing and draining beans can remove up to 41% of the sodium content! So have at it. I gotta find the link to that fun fact.

For the zucchini fries, I cut them into wedges, coated in a bit of olive oil, tossed with cornmeal + oregano + black pepper and baked at 400F for 20 minutes then flipped and baked for another 10 minutes. I think they could have gone for longer in the oven but they just smelled too good to resist.

*I'll try my best to do the basic nutrition information for recipes I mostly create, but it is a bit tedious (especially with more ingredients). If you're worried about the calorie amount, these burgers are pretty substantial so feel free to make into 8 patties.

Summer nights

That phrase only ever makes me think of one thing. Can you guess?

I love singing to musicals, give me some Grease, Sound of Music, although really, turn on some throwback 80s and 90s and I'll still jump around the room singing to pop hits. It's a great way to just chill with friends, but don't expect me to name the band or song, I'm not that culturally cool :)

I'm hoping that my current unemployment and overflow of posts will make up for when I disappear for days when I actually crank it out and study for this durn test.

It's summer and I'm trying to feed M&D healthy foods so desserts which takes out a lot of the baked goodness (b/c even if I bake in small quantities, I know we'll all just gobble them up, and that's not a remark on my stellar baking skills, but rather our large appetites for sweets).

Meat me in St. Louis

Although to be completely honest, if you end up in St. Louis, you won't find me...sorry! I've forgotten my old blog login (it was connected to my hotmail account, does that sound outdated or what) and I'm no longer in Keene, so welcome to the new eaty eat world. Let me dive right into food ideas, if you want to learn more about me, feel free to check out the about me or email me!

 

For those of you who may not know me, I was a strict pescatarian for the last 15 years or so and then all of a sudden I end up in NH and I start craving meat all the time. Like wanting to buy frozen hamburgers at the grocery store and dreaming about meat. So, fell off that bandwagon. It's slow and steady but it's another adventure in cooking for me. If you didn't read my "about me" then you'll soon find out I'm all about quick and easy meals (at least 90% of the time) and I am catering to the tastebuds of my parents (aka, meat and potatoes). I'm looking for the fewest ingredients and I'm constantly browsing blogs and websites for the next best dish to try or I just experiment with whatever is in the house. Case in point: first full day back in MD and made the trip to Costco and convinced M to add a rotisserie chicken to the cart (it didn't take a lot of persuasion...the parents are quite happy I've fallen off the bandwagon). I didn't realize that there was so much meat on the bird!

Meals out of 1 rotisserie chicken (with lots of picking at the meat off the meat pile)

1) Taco salad: lettuce + chicken + beans and sauteed peppers and onions + salsa (not a fan of the salsa I got from Costco- too sweet) + guacamole + cheese + hot sauce

2) Chicken salad sandwich (sdw): bread + lettuce + turkey bacon (I couldn't help myself!) + chicken salad (chicken salad + greek yogurt + onion + diced bell peppers + salt + black pepper)

3) Chicken quesadillas: leftover party! chicken (cooked down in salsa) + beans and sauteed peppers and onions from salad + cheese + tortillas, on the side- guac, salsa, greek yogurt (much tangier than sour cream, yum!)
4) Chicken pizza: tortilla + tomato sauce (onions + garlic + tomatoes + salt + pepper), chicken, bell peppers + onions + cheese