Sunday, July 31, 2011

been here. been there.

seems like things are back to normal on here with posts/comments.

been traveling a lot. thankfully, to major cities.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

favorite "trashy" dish

my friend and i were talking about "trashy" or "junky" types of food that you just love.

a favorite among my family is baked french fries (baked fries? yeah, sounds duh.) covered with pasta sauce and soy Parmesan cheese. so basic. but, soooo good.
his is greasy fries with hollandaise sauce. never thought to try it. i do make the sauce with almond milk.

you?

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

blogger problem

is anyone else not able to post comments on other blogger sites?  i tried on 2 that i follow over the past few days. says i need to sign in, then takes me back to my dashboard. annoying definitely.
and, i know, if you can post to this entry, it's a no. hee!

Friday, May 27, 2011

pizza

ever notice that the hardest thing (foodwise) to photograph is thin crust pizza?
it is for me. I've tried. always ends up looking ugh. could be the best tasting.
anyway.

I've been wanting to try this recipe for a bit. whole wheat vegan pizza dough may not sound great to some. but, for me who loves whole wheat over not, it does.

whole wheat pizza dough
1 cup sauteed button mushroom, zucchini, red onion
1 8oz can of crushed tomatoes, drained
1/2 cup shredded soy mozzarella
1/4 cup shredded soy Parmesan cheese

used a glass baking dish. baked at 425 for 20 minutes.
it was really good. loved that the dough was so easy to make.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

surgery done

had to have (3) dental surgeries. nightmare. due to pain and the joys of mouth problems. so been eating a lot of soup and agar agar "jello". have you ever taken the time to look at the sodium in canned soup? just wow! it's disguisting. i literally spent 20 minutes in the aisle reading labels. hopefully, i'll be able to start eating normal in a week or so. after almost 2 monthes, i'm ready to start cooking regularly again.

Monday, May 9, 2011

dealing at work

i don't know how most places of work are. but, my work likes to reward us for making different goals with food. this can be a huge problem. what do they usually give us: pizza. definite nono for me.hello dairy overload! you just hope for bread sticks. that way people don't start the questions. this last time, we earned breakfast. be it a food allergy or dietary preference, breakfast is a hard thing. almost a slap. do you really want to go out of your way for bacon (no thank you) and toast?
so, you get to walk that fine line of how to avoid the situation.
do you call in? go eat your lovely toast? explain why you aren't eating?
i made the mistake of saying no thank you. that leads to the dreaded embarassing explaination. then, becomes people going "well, you could eat.......uh......toast". you want to say "yeah, enjoy your eggs, pancakes, and lovely drinks (milk)".
it's a no win embarassing situation.

Monday, April 11, 2011

school bans homemade lunches

chicago school bans homemade lunches

anyone else see this on yahoo?
only a child who has a food allergy can bring in a meal. my older son has the choice of buying or taking lunches from home. he's lucky and has no allergies. he chooses to take 99% of the time. so, i got him a thermal container. can have hot or cold lunches. why? he comes home with horror stories: today for lunch they had fish sticks, a roll and carrots.
i can see banning junk food. but, a lot of kids bring perfectly healthy lunches. both my boys schools ban soda, fast food and the like.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Israeli Couscous

While checking for something new in the bulk bins at Whole Foods, i came across Israeli Couscous. I've had it at restaurants. but, never seen it at a grocery store before. so, had to buy a pound of it. this was my first try. very basic and very delicious. i cooked the couscous in chicken broth (you could use veggie broth) just like it was any pasta.  after it was cooked, i added it to some grilled beef and asparagus. about 1/2 cup of the broth, tsp of dried parsley and tsp of dried oregano.

if you've never had Israeli couscous, it's definitely worth trying.

pop chips

I've had these a few times. they're vegan. not greasy. and, have a good taste. there's 3 different flavors: original, salt & vinegar and BBQ. the original is definitely the best. maybe I'm a purest.  
you should try these.

Friday, April 8, 2011

a letter

dear Starbucks,

i understand the raising of your prices. everyone did. but, medium 2 drinks for $12 is a turnoff. then, to add insult to injury, soy milk in anything costs 60 cents more per drink. 60 cents? per drink? so, people with food allergies or want the healthiness or vegan get fined. no thank you. i'll bring my own drink next time.

no love,
the lady (and small child) who feel this is unfair

my son thinks a vanlla bean frappuccino is a "milkshake". i'll make my own as a small with soy milk is over $5.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

traveling

i'm visiting my parents for a few days starting friday. not looking forward to it. yes, i am elated to see family. but, knowing my son and mine's dietary issues, i'll have to go to the store for most everything we need. plus, my father without fail will eat something like ice cream or cheese and tell me how it's "soooooooo good". joy.

here's to a peaceful trip.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

it's just cheese

i try to shop at farmer's markets and the like. whole foods is good for those hard to find items.

but, i've been kind of sick off and on lately. it's been a rough year. so, i've been buying what i can at the super target. yesterday,while there, i was trying to buy items for fajitas.
me: "do you carry soy cheese?"
dairy employee: "we have lactose free"
me: so, no soy? rice?
de: we have lactose free

if you don't, please just say you don't. it won't hurt me. had a similar conversation about sour cream too.  now, i did remember publix carries soy in their vegetable dept. ended up there for everything.
i don't mind when places don't carry items. really. just come out and say it.
dairy free "ice cream" is a another one.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

changing things around here

title change. changing the content too. but, still recipes and food reviews.

i want to make this more how we deal, what it's like to try to find things, and the like. i think people think "oh, that's such an easy thing to deal with". read a bread package, cookie package, ask at the restaurant what's in a dish. it's complicated.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

veggie pasta with chicken "bolognese" sauce

in the not much to look at file. but, was trying to make a "semi" healthier version of bolognese sauce.

found some ground chicken and this cool looking corkscrew veggie pasta. sadly, the pasta lost a lot of the vibrant color while cooking. still was good. it's pretty chewy.

using the basic tomato sauce.
in a blender ~ combine 2 cans of tomatoes (14oz can), tsp dried oregano, tsp dried basil, tbsp dried garlic, tbsp parsley, and a 4oz can of sliced mushrooms. puree until thick and smooth.
add to 1lb cooked ground chicken.
cook unto hot. this is a longer it simmers/better it tastes sauce.
serve over cooked veggie pasta.

beautiful

so everyone who knows me knows I'm a Japanese/Asian/sushi food addict. this lovely photo was a dinner from mikado. healthy and very tasty. good for someone with dietary issues. though, they did put the omelet on by mistake. my friend gladly ate it for me.
this is called chirashi. it's various fish (some raw, some cooked), Japanese pickles and sushi rice. just delicious. but, way too much for 1 person. if you're ever in Orlando/hunter's creek area, definitely check this place out. they have something for everyone. my 3 yr old loves the yakitori and well, he's not too picky.
i'm still here. it's been rough.

Friday, January 14, 2011

finding lunch

sick. can't work due to it. but today, is the 1st day i feel "human" enough to eat anything other than soup and plain pasta. so, i sit here not wanting to go to the grocery store nor eat anything that is nasty/greasy/who knows what it's made of. i foresee a baked potato and side salad. but, remember that most "extras" and dressings are the calorie killers.
so, here's my question:

what's your favorite healthy lunch that can be bought at any fast food restaurant?

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

shrimp orzo soup

been taking turns being sick here. it's my turn. ugh. so, little time to cook or post.
am i the only person who dislikes chicken?

shrimp orzo soup

2 cups of cooked "salad" or petite shrimp
1 cup of sliced carrots
2 cups of sliced celery
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp chopped thyme
2 containers veggie stock 32oz box
1 cup uncooked orzo

simple: cook orzo as usual and drain. i keep it separate. otherwise, it'll sop all the broth
put carrots, parsley,thyme and stock pot.bring to boil. lower heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. add shrimp. add orzo to bowl and ladle soup over.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

purely decadent mint chip

purely decadent mint chip non-dairy frozen dessert

OK, when you can't have milk, ice cream flavors are no fun. generally, it's vanilla, vanilla with some sort of nut, chocolate and other forms of chocolate. I'm not big on chocolate. but, do love mint. so, while at publix decided to pick up this lovely treat.
plus side: it's creamy. tastes very good. sweet.
the downside: it's expensive. almost $6 for that lovely little container.