cellophane_star's Journal

Weekend Eats

Nov 09 2009 08:01

Good morning! How was everyone's weekend? I took it easy. Did a bit of Christmas shopping. Saw Michael Jackson's "This Is It"... that was really good. The dancing was incredible! Ate some peanut M&Ms. I caved.

Anyway, on Friday, I did some baking. I finally broke out the new Eat Clean Diet Cookbook to make Mocha Protein Bars. I used two things for the first time: Coconut oil & Starbuck's VIA instant coffee. The bars were pretty good, though the serving size of 24 bars from a 9x12 pan was totally unrealistic. I halved the recipe, baked it in a loaf pan and cut 8 bars (squares, really). They were tasty though!

Before that, I made a root vegetable medley: purple potatoes, parsnips, yams & carrots. I cut them all up, tossed with olive oil & added fresh rosemary & parsley, garlic salt, pepper and baked them all. Very nice. First time using parsnip... will use again! It has a nice sweetness.

Sunday morning: I know I've posted this one before but it's too good: This Zucchini Bread Oatmeal is such a good breakfast! Just try it.

Last night, I made the Spicy Turkey Meatloaf Muffins I posted. SO GOOD. Wow. Very easy, very tasty.

I started indexing all my Clean Eating magazine & cookbook recipes so prepare to see a few meals coming from there in the future! I have Wednesday off (Rememberance Day) so I'm already planning to make Kasha (Buckwheat) Breakfast Pudding from the cookbook. It uses Kefir... Oooo...

A few recipe I had bookmarked (mostly sweets!):

Saag Aloo (Potatoes with Spiced Spinach)

Chicken Tajine with Honey & Apricots

Various Cottage Cheese Recipes

Pumpkin Pie Bites (Fat Free Vegan blog)

Pumpkin Pie Granola Bars

Raisin & Almond Cookies

Vegan Gingerbread

Almond Lime Cake

Gingerbread Pancakes (woo hoo!)

How to Make Your Own Brown Sugar

I think that's all for today!

We've set the date!

Nov 05 2009 12:25

It's official... Greg & I will be getting married on August 28, 2010!!!

It will happen at this church. (More pictures of inside the church here and here).

Most likely using this photographer. We met her last weekend and thought she fit our personality (and the price was amazing considered the quality of her photos... plus we get an engagement photo session!)

OMG.

Hot Stuff

Nov 04 2009 13:42

Hi all, I haven't updated in a week or so. I'm still here... just not in the mood to update or write anything. It's weird. I've been reading everyone's entries though.

I've been busy working out, wedding planning & cooking.

Working Out:

I've been busting my ass in my new program for 6 weeks now and I'm enjoying it. The workouts are really hard & intense but usually rewarding. In fact, I've been losing weight. I did not expect this but today, when I weighed myself on my gym's scale (the one that notoriously makes me weigh 1-2 lbs more than other scales), I was at 159.5 lbs. UNDER 160... I've never been. I might even be less because when I weighed on a digital scale last week, it said 158.8 lbs. I'm pretty sure I started at 162-ish. Wow, right? I am feeling hot.

Oh, I've also been eating slightly less. I've been logging my food for the past 6 weeks and I average about 1750-1900 per day. But my eating lately has been super clean.

So this program is supposed to go on for a minimum of 12 weeks. After that, you have the option to continue on for 12 months with the discounted rate. I think I just might do that, since that will take me right up to the wedding date. We'll see.

btw, if anyone is interested in seeing a sample workout (from either my PT sessions or the two bootcamp-style classes I take at my gym), let me know. I've been recording them each day.

Wedding Planning:

Things are coming together. I'm pretty sure the date will be August 28, 2010.... this will be confirmed tomorrow after we meet with a priest. I'll post some links with pictures of the church and our potential photographer too. I haven't been looking for a dress yet.

Cooking:

A few things I've made recently... the links are posted in previous entries of my journal...

Butternut Squash Maple Scallion Balls (very nice though more work than is necessary since butternut squash tastes great on its own!)
Baked Blueberry Oatmeal Pudding (very tasty but the smooth pudding texture is too hard to achieve without a high speed blender. I tried to blend it all in my food processor... there were oats & milk all over the counter. I just baked the "chunky" version and I would do it again.)
Red Lentil Daal (It's sitting in my fridge... I'm letting the flavours develop! I know this is a good recipe though)
Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries & Walnuts (I made this a while ago, when this issue first came out, and I wasn't too impressed. I decided to try it again and the results were WAY better. I think it's essential to a) keep an eye on the sprouts when you add the water and b) use walnut oil at the end. These were really great.)
Turkey or chicken breast, stuffed with spinach, cranberries, figs & pine nuts from Clean Eating magazine, two issues ago (this is my second time making this... recommended. Very tasty & easy, once you get the hang of rolling up the meat)
Salmon Patties from the most recent from Clean Eating magazine (very tasty & easy to make. However, two egg whites is not enough liquid to bond this mixture into patties. The whole thing fell apart before I could even get them on the pan so I ended up eating more of a "salmon hash" instead. I loved it though.)

Let's wrap up this entry with some recipes:

Chili Lime Sweet Potato

Spicy Turkey Meatloaf Muffins

Fat-Free Mango & Strawberry Bread

Bye bye for now!

Recipe updates.

Oct 27 2009 08:56

Hi all,

Just wanted to give some updates on a few recipes I posted & tried:

Sunday night: I made Bulgur with Swiss Chard & Leeks. Pretty tasty. Good way to get green veggies into a meal. I don't think I'd make it regularly but it was decent. I served it with herbed turkey breast & Trader Joe's cranberry-apple chutney.

Last night: Spicy Mexi Millet, made with kidney beans. (I had like 8 cans of beans in my cupboard but not black beans!) Anyway, this was really really good. I love using millet.

Planning to make sometime this week: White Bean Balls and Fat Free Pumpkin & Raisin Biscuits (edit: made 'em both... pretty decent!). I got the new Vegetarian Times magazine in the mail yesterday so there might be some good recipes in that too (edit: nothing outstanding in this issue :(). I need to review it today! And I bought a parsnip & purple potatoes & a small pumpkin that I need to use somehow. Mmmm... I've never actually bought a pumpkin to eat. I've only carved them for Halloween or eaten pumpkin puree in a can!

Also (for drwxpanda's info) my review of the newest vegetarian restaurant in Calgary, Gratitude Cafe. It was ok. The meals were pretty standard stuff... nothing I couldn't make at home. My friends and I ordered from the "I Am Very Hungry" section of the menu. You tell them what you want and they give you a little checklist of what you want in it. For example, I ordered the bean burrito (without rice) and I selected all the veggies/nuts/sprouts/etc I wanted stuffed into it. It was very tasty. I liked The Coup better though. Their food is more creative and the service & atmosphere is way nicer.

btw, the new workout program I'm doing is going well. The last time I mentioned it, I was complaining but I'm enjoying it now. I end up doing 5 straight days off hard workouts but the weekends are all about resting. In combo with this workout regime, my eating has been very good. I wonder if I'll get results.

That's all for today!

Greatest workout yesterday..

Oct 23 2009 09:15

... one of those ones where it's really tough but you somehow manage to make it through & feel like a total badass:

After the warmup, we did an endurance routine. Using a 12 lb sandbag, we did 5 rounds of squats, lunges, overhead presses & tricep dips (no sandbag) + hall sprint (carrying sandbag). With each round, we increased the reps by 5, so we started with 10 & went up to 15-20-25-30 reps. Holy... it was not easy. My butt is yelling at me today.

Following that, we did a quick round of sprint intervals & core work: 200 m sprint + 20 leg lowers, then a 300 m sprint + 20 toe touches holding a 10 lbs plate, then a 400 m sprint + plank hold to failure (30 secs).

It was just me and another guy doing this so I was trying to beat him the entire time, plus this new trainer is doing a good job of keeping me motivated & pushing me to the end. Love it. One more boot camp class at lunch today then I get two days off from workouts so I can recover.

I have a full weekend ahead... Brunch with Greg's family on Saturday, dinner, drinks & Rock Band with two of his friends Sat night, lunch with two of my friends on Sunday. I'm finally going to the newest vegetarian restaurant in town. I've heard good things. Then we're going to Crave for their annual pumpkin spice cupcake... it's my favourite seasonal cupcake and you can only get it in October. It's a must have. btw, I'm pretty sure we'll be getting Crave to make our wedding cake :)

Recipes:

Apple & Pumpkin pie spice mixes

Lentil & Squash Casserole

Butternut Squash-Maple-Scallion Balls

Kidney Bean Burgers

Bulgur with Leeks & Swiss Chard

How to cook perfect brown rice

Have a nice weekend!

Work out.

Oct 21 2009 08:27

Good morning!

Here's what we did in yesterday's training session:

After the warm-up, we did a Tabata sequence. Basically, you do one exercise for 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off and repeat the exercise 8 times, trying to beat your number of reps each time. We did 5 different exercises (box jumps, kettlebell swings, pull ups, plank walk, lateral bounds) 8 times each, then switched to the next exercise. Challenging! 20 seconds seems like nothing but you do get pretty fatigued! I'm proud of myself though because I finally used the high box for my jumps. I was always psyching myself out & using the shorter, safer box. Go me! After the Tabata, we did a quick set where one person sprinted up and down the hall 4 times while the other two people were doing either back extensions & jacknifes (knee tucks) on a ball. Intense!

Here's a few recipes:

Lentil Balls (I love any recipe with lentils and/or millet!)

Roasted Cinnamon Sweet Potato White Bean Mash (unsure about this but I'm intrigued.

I'm really into lentils right now. They're so easy to make, taste great and they're full of protein but low in calories. Plus they're high in fiber so a small amount actually fills you up. And they're so versatile. Same thing goes for canned beans. Love them.

That's all for today, I believe!

Feelin' Fine & Quick Supper Recipe

Oct 20 2009 07:54

Good morning! Despite my fear, I had a good workout yesterday. It was challenging at times but doable. I'm not even sore today so I guess my resistance hiatus was no big deal. I weighed in yesterday too... it's about where I was hoping it would be though I'd like to see it 2 lbs less. Nothing to fret over.

Anyway, I whipped up this quickie dinner last night so I must share...

Five-Spice Shrimp with Bell Pepper, Edamame & Bulgur:

Take 1/4 c of dry bulgur, add to 1/2 c boiling water, reduce heat to low, cover and let sit for 10-15 mins until water is absorbed. In the meantime, thaw 12 thawed shrimp by running them under cold water for 3-5 mins. Toss them with a spray of PAM and ~1/2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder. Heat ~1/2 tbsp toasted sesame oil in a skillet, then toss in 1/2 a bell pepper (I used 1/4 red & 1/4 yellow) + 1 chopped shallot + 1/4 c frozen shelled edamame into the pan, then throw the shrimp into the mix. Saute all for about 5 mins. Add ~1 tbsp of tamari and another sprinkling of five-spice powder. When it's almost done, add a chopped clove of garlic & saute for ~1 min. Lower heat and add the cooked bulgur. Mix to combine and that's it! Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top and you're good to go!

I found this recipe for Baked Blueberry Oatmeal Pudding this morning. I must make this on the weekend. Lately I'm crazy for any recipe involving old-fashioned oats and/or baked oatmeal. Also, I'm loving frozen red grapes and bananas. Great little desserts for after dinner.

I think that's it for today. Oh wait... does anyone know how much it costs to hire a wedding planner? I'm considering it because I have no idea about weddings and I think planner could come up with amazing ideas (plus take all the stress out of the planning process). I have no clue about the cost though. Thanks!

Back with recipes.

Oct 19 2009 09:53

Thank you all for your congratulations & nice words in my engagement post... We're both very happy and excited :)

Here's my ring!

(The non-diamond is my "earth ring", a geologist spin-off of the engineering world's iron ring, which I got when I graduated from university and have worn it every day since... until I got my engagement ring. Now the earth ring is sitting at home! Not sure if I should keep wearing it...)

However, since I'm back from vacation & back to work today, I'm all like this...

But I'll be back to the gym & regular workouts after work...

Admittedly, I didn't do too badly on exercise during my 10 day vacation. I managed to get a workout in most days, either at the gym or on a hike though my exercise was mostly cardio. I haven't done any resistance training in about a week so today's Body Burn class should be a treat/nightmare.

And food was ok too. though some meals were bigger than others. I don't feel like I pigged out or anything. I got back on track all day yesterday: all clean, whole foods and no desserts. I was proud of last night's dinner... I cut up some turkey breast into "fingers", dipped them with egg, coated them with a mixture of crushed-up multibran flax flakes, fresh poultry herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme), garlic salt & pepper and baked. I served this with a dipping sauce of cranberry sauce mixed with an equal amount of plain yogurt & a bit of pepper, plus some wilted spinach & baked yam. It was yum.

Here are some recipes I e-mailed myself from Tastespotting over the last 10 days or so...

Vegan (beans & lentils & whole grains):

Spiced Rice & Lentil Squares

Spicy Mexican Millet

Various squash recipes:

Spaghetti Squash & Chard Gratin

Butternut Squash Chili

Lemony Quinoa with Butternut Squash

Pumpkin Stew

Pumpkin coffee cake

Pumpkin Butter

Misc Desserts/Snacks:

Banana Apple & Walnut Bread

Blueberry Oat Bar

Vegan Peanut Butter Muffins

Tips:

Buttermilk Substitutions

There you go!

Have a nice day!

Atlantica

Oct 15 2009 19:02

Holy cow. I just had one of the greatest dinner of all time. Like the kind of dinner where everything was just that amazing and you didn't care that an entree cost $40. I have to write this down before I forget the detail!

Greg & I ate at Atlantica, which overlooks the ocean (but it was dark outside). I got a white wine (Stoneleigh Sauvignon Blanc) and he got a red (something and then a Malbec). They brought out French bread with butter, sprinkled with cracked pepper. Then we got an amuse bouche to "rev up our tastebuds" (You know a place is fancy when you get an amuse bouche!): a foamed asparagus puree topped with truffle oil, served in an espresso cup. Then we got our appetizers. I chose the mixed greens salad (from the menu) with beets, goat cheese, parsnip chips and beet vinegarette. YUM. Great starter. Greg got 3 pan-seared scallops with mushroom sauce.

Our entrees were unbelieveable. Greg ordered the cod (from the menu) but I ordered the halibut feature: pan-seared halibut on a bed of white beans (they looked like butter beans but larger), corn & wilted spinach. This halibut was unreal. Like I have never had fish cooked like this. I'm still tasting it. Phenomenal. I tried Greg's cod... the fish just melted in your mouth. So perfect, though I'm glad I personally ordered the halibut.

Then we had dessert, which I will admit didn't live up to the standard set by the entree. I got a little carrot cake (more like a carrot cupcake) with a cold cream cheese icing so it was like ice cream on top. I don't usually order carrot cake as it's not my dessert of choice so I maybe should have went with the chocolate mousse cake instead? I don't really care for mousse though. Anyway, Greg got a lemon tart with meringue. They were good, but not $10 good. you know?

And at the end of the meal, we got warm towels. Like the kind you get on a first class flight. I have never had that happen in a restaurant.

So to sum it up: I just died at this place.

I should write a book (or at least a blog posting) about the food I've eaten in the past 8 days here in Newfoundland. Here's the short list which I may expand on when I get back to being bored at work:

Jiggs Dinner
Toutons with molasses
Turkey dinner with dressing, gravy, carrots, turnip, parsnip, potato (all the root veggies)
Freshly baked Ezekiel bread (have you ever seen Ezekiel bread fresh? I didn't think it existed outside the freezer section!)
Wild blueberries
Berry Jam (bakeapple, partridgeberry, wild blueberry)
Pan-fried cod
Fish cakes (made with salt cod)
Moose burgers/steak
Quidi Vidi Brewery beers (we did the brewery tour... gotta write about that)
(split yellow) Pea Soup with salt beef
Mom's macaroni & cheese and various cookies/squares
Chocolate half-dipped oatcakes
Stuff Greg likes: Pineapple Crush (soda), fries with dressing & gravy, deep fried cod, "fries n' gravy" and "roast chicken" flavoured potato chips, salt beef

I even went into visit my old university today & stopped at the food court to buy a muffin I used to love: the oatmeal chocolate chip muffin from Treats. It was like... amazing.

I'm just blabbing here... I need to record all this stuff.

Tomorrow night, we're finally heading down to George Street. This is the prime party spot for young people. I've been here 8 days and still haven't made it down (which is considered a sin). Since I don't really drink anymore (compared to university days), I haven't had the urgency to head down. However, I'm curious to try the bakeapple beer I heard that this place is making. This pub opened after I moved away so I've never been. Then maybe we'll head to O'Reilly's Irish Pub for some Newfie music as a nice close to our trip.

I don't want to go back to boring ol' Calgary! That means I have to go back to reality of work & workouts! Though admittedly, I do look forward to the challenging workout I know is coming on Monday after work. Fun!

K, this is getting long. Was this interesting? I'm off to bed!

Getting Married!

Oct 12 2009 18:43

So, here's some exciting news besides all the Newfie food I mentioned experiencing in my previous entry (btw, I had Newfoundland pea soup tonight. Mmmm...)

Greg finally popped the question! & I accepted, obviously!

We went on a hike at a place called Green Gardens here in Gros Morne National Park. It was an uphill walk over the side of a hill. For a good portion of the walk, it was open, so it was quite windy but not too cold. Once we got around the side of the hill, we got an ocean view so we took some pictures & climbed up on a rock for a full view. Then he turned around with the ring & it was like the weirdest moment because I thought he might do it on this trip and thought "this would be a nice spot". and then he had the ring in his hand & proposed. I was very excited. I didn't cry or anything but was more giddy with delight.

I haven't told my parents yet. I'm waiting until we get back to St. John's tomorrow & do it in person. My mom is going to freak... she's in love with Greg. Pictures & stuff to follow when I get back to Calgary!