We're Here!

Oh wow, we got here yesterday and the temperature was 80 degrees! Sunshine and a light breeze. Last night, we got some really hard rain and lots of wind but today the sun is shining again. It's still breezy but we were able to take a walk on the beach and get our feet wet.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tomorrow we begin our Thanksgiving journey over the river and - oh, wait, we are actually heading to Gulf Shores for the week! We'll go to Corinth tomorrow evening to pick up my folks and then we'll head out early Monday morning for the drive to Gulf Shores. John's brother Jack and his wife Pam are meeting us there and we plan to spend some time cooking together and sharing recipes and ideas. We have been looking forward to this for quite some time and I am desperately in need of some R&R.

We'll cook a pretty traditional Thanksgiving dinner next Thursday. I'm planning on making some dressing, some mashed potatoes, probably cooking some green beans, making some homemade rolls and some cranberry sauce. Maybe I'll make an apple pie or a pumpkin pie for dessert. At any rate, Mom and Dad can get a rotisserie chicken if they like but I'm sure Jack, Pam, John and I will enjoy our first vegan Thanksgiving. As Jack said, we will spare the life of a turkey this year - but those wild tofus better watch out!

Happy Thanksgiving to all. May you remember God's love and provision as you celebrate His bounty.

See you next week!

Lentil Soup

I've always heard of lentil soup but never eaten any and certainly never made any until today. It was easy to do: I just used a pound of lentils and covered them with water and heated them until they were boiling hard, then drained and washed them and put them back in the pot with a can of diced tomatoes, some chopped onion, garlic powder, and some veggie stock and water. I let them cook for about 30-40 minutes then added some diced carrots and frozen spinach. It simmered for about another 30-40 minutes til everything was tender. It was quite good - a nice hearty soup for a cold day.

Three Months

It's been 3 months today since we began this journey. I can honestly say that I don't miss meat - or dairy (except for cheese), eggs only a little bit, and oils, not at all - in fact, sometimes the thought of it makes me a little queasy. We are healthier, lighter, more energetic, and never hungry. We are finding it fun to be creative in the kitchen and, in fact, John has discovered that he enjoys baking! Today he found a recipe for molasses cookies and he made a batch. As you can see, they are beautiful and delicious to boot. Now, we just need to practice some restraint!

Bread Success

I finally did it! I got a loaf of bread that filled up the pan, is light and fluffy and delicious! The recipe is here. I finally got so disgusted with the little hockey puck loaves that I decided to proof my yeast before I started the machine. Well, there was definitely nothing wrong with the yeast! I dumped everything in the machine and then added the yeast in the water. Voila! A beautiful loaf of bread. I feel vindicated. Next time I'll take a picture.

Taco Bread and Chili

Shirley loaned me her bread machine so I could play with it so I've been making bread right and left - trying different recipes and types of breads. Unfortunately, there's something that I'm not doing just right because the loaves are only about half the height of the baking tub. I keep switching things around and making adjustments but they all turn out within a half inch of each other in height.

It's so cold today that chili sounded like just the ticket so I put on a big pot to cook. While it was simmering, I made some taco bread. It was a short little loaf - just like the rest - but boy oh boy was it ever delicious! It really complemented the flavor of the chili. I've really got to figure out what I'm doing wrong with this machine. I'm off to Kroger to buy some different flour. Maybe that's it.

He Bakes!

My wonderful husband baked cookies today! He admitted that this is the first time that he's done that unless you count slice and bake cookies in a tube. Wow. He can't do this very often. These things are AWESOME!!!!! He has been spending time surfing the web looking for trouble - er uh, I mean, recipes. :) Today he found this recipe for Craving-Cure cookies. He did a great job (He said he added a little extra applesauce because the dough was too dry). They are soooo good. I'm glad he put them away to keep me out of them. He used vegan chocolate chips (non-dairy) and raisins. Yum Yum!

Spaghetti Squash Stir-Fry

I had a spaghetti squash that needed to be used - and tonight is grocery night and we are out of alot of stuff so it was time to be creative. I cooked the squash in the microwave (cut in half, de-seeded, wrapped in plastic wrap) for about 15 minutes til it was tender. While it sat, still wrapped, steaming, I threw the following veggies in a BIG non-stick skillet - onion, tomatoes, carrots, spinach leaves, a can of baby corn, a can of bamboo shoots, pineapple chunks- added a little veggie broth and low sodium soy sauce for the saute. When the veggies got tender, I added the shredded squash, a little sea salt, and a little more soy sauce. I served it up with some duck sauce. Wow! Hot, hearty, and tasty! Who could ask for more? We do stir fry fairly often but usually serve it over rice. The spaghetti squash was a nice change and - the best part - this whole skillet was zero fat!

Morgan's Pancakes

Sunday morning is always a good time for pancakes and this new lifestyle doesn't hold us back too much. Here's a picture of Morgan's breakfast. I cut up some strawberries and heated them with a little Splenda, water, and Walden Farms pancake syrup. Yum yum!

Sweet Tooth

Sometimes you need some chocolate. I dusted off the old Chocolate Pudding Cake recipe tonight. Moderation would certainly need to be the order of the day with this one. I made it right by the recipe except I used 3 tablespoons of applesauce rather than 3 tablespoons of melted butter (and soy milk of course). It doesn't seem to have made any difference at all. Wow. John said he could only think of one word to describe it: decadent. You could feed this to non-vegans without even a disclaimer. I usually sub at least half Splenda when I make something sweet but I didn't do it tonight - wanting to try one substitution at a time. Good thing Morgan is here to help us eat this. We might hurt ourselves otherwise. :)

Pizza!!!

Finally I had enough time to do this! And surprisingly, in no more than the time that we would ordinarily call for delivery! Mark sent a different crust recipe and that's the one I tried. The recipe says it makes 2 - 12 inch pizzas but my stone is 15 inches. I may not have let it "rest" long enough and I didn't get alot of rise, but it was really delicious. The sauce is 365 brand and I put 1 packet of Boca crumbles (looks just like ground beef but none of the bad stuff) in the sauce with some fresh garlic and more spices. Then added thinly sliced roma tomatoes, chopped green pepper, chopped mushrooms and onion (on my half of the pizza) and some chopped spinach. Wow! What a treat! We'll definitely do this again. By the way, the stone worked great.

Tuscan Bread

We've been buying some artisan breads at Kroger for the past month or so. Since they start at about $5 per loaf, I decided it would be nice to make my own. I did a Google search for Tuscan Bread and used the recipe that seemed to pop up under multiple links (here). Mine was NOT pretty - I think I did ok until it came to forming the loaf. But it sure was tasty! Even Morgan loved it. (I baked it on a pizza stone with some corn meal sprinkled over it.) We served it with some whole wheat spiral pasta with 365 brand pasta sauce (right out of the jar - no modifications), and a nice fresh spinach salad with roma tomatoes. Wow! What a feast. I can't believe I thought I couldn't give up meat.

Pizza tonight!

Awesome Results

Just to add to the great results reports - John's brother Jack and his wife Pam have also joined this lifestyle. Jack called yesterday with an update. They have lost 20 pounds each. His cholesterol was 205 when they started back in late August. He had it checked again yesterday and it is now 142!!!! This plan works! More proof. Pam is set to see her doctor in a few weeks and we will be anxious to see those results as well.

Great job Jack! Congratulations. Jack's new blog is here.

Pizza Dough Recipe

Mark sent a recipe for a pizza crust and an awesome description the other day. I plan to make pizza at some point this weekend - among other things. This is copied and pasted from a post on the web.

"This is from pp.274-275 of Ornish's Eat More, Weigh Less, Jean-Marc Fullsack' s recipe. PIZZA DOUGH
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon honey
4 cups unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, combine the water, yeast, honey, and 4 teaspoons of flour. Stir gently to combine. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let stand for 30 minutes in a warm place until foamy. Add the remaining flour and salt, then knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough is well combined and smooth; add small amounts of additional flour if the dough is sticky.

Transfer the dough to a large bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place for 45 minutes, or until doubled in volume. Punch the dough down and roll to fit into a 16-inch pizza pan.

When you've topped it with your favorite stuff, cook it in a preheated 450 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

Here's my take on the recipe. I added herbs and garlic powder to the dough while kneading. I sort of stretched it to fit the pan by holding it in my hands and letting gravity pull down on it till it was almost big enough, then spread it on the pizza pan. I sprinkled more garlic and onion powder all over the dough, but especially on the edges. I also sprinkled it with a little bit of corn meal for texture. I put it in the oven while I finished chopping my veggies--about ten minutes?--so that it was not beginning to brown, but there was a definite hardness to the puffed up crust. This keeps the sauce from getting the dough soggy. "

Mark's personal tips:
He used parchment paper to line the pizza pan. He used soy pepperoni, onions, mushrooms and lots of onion and garlic. His came out like a pan pizza.

Thanks Mark. I'll be trying this soon.

Playing with beans

I cooked a pot of pinto beans the other night - and made some cornbread. It was such a good supper. (I use part water, part veggie broth to flavor the beans.) There were plenty of leftovers, and since Mark called my attention to the amount of fat in the veggie burgers, I've been wanting to work on a good substitute so the beans were a great vehicle. I don't have the exact quantities because this was kind of a "keep adding stuff til it tastes right" project- but here's what I did:
took the leftover beans and put them in my food processor with 8 or 10 of the little mini carrots, added some leftover brown rice, some egg substitute, some oatmeal, and started seasoning it. I used a tomato, some Worcestershire sauce, some Walden Farms barbecue sauce, a little salt and some pepper. Oh, and a little garlic powder too. I blended all that stuff together and then "fried" it by heaping spoonfuls in a non-stick skillet. It sticks a little if you turn it too soon, but I found if I was patient and let it brown good on each side, they didn't stick at all. It made a pretty good stack of what I am calling "bean cakes".

The first time I ate one, I had it on a bun with all the burger fixins. The next time, I just had it on a plate with a little ketchup on top - ate it with some "creamed" spinach (made with fresh spinach leaves, garlic and silken tofu) and a baked sweet potato with just a little cinnamon on top. It actually reminded me of a fried salmon patty - about the same texture. John hasn't tried it yet but I think it's pretty good.

At any rate, we have a ziploc bag full. Morgan is visiting this weekend. Hope she likes them!

Election Musings

Well, it sure didn't go the way I wanted it to go - and I am really disappointed. I've done alot of things throughout my life to elevate my circumstances - worked hard, gone to school full time and worked full time while driving over 65,000 miles to get to classes - moved the household a few times, once across an ocean - and been a good, patriotic citizen of this wonderful country that we call OURS. I have a really good job. I am so blessed to work from our beautiful home. John and I have a wonderful extended family and dynamic kids and in-laws and 7 beautiful, brilliant grandkids. We have a warm, loving Church family that encourages us and loves us. We have faithful friends. We are truly blessed.

I confess that I am concerned about what happens next. Information currently available about our President-elect's tax plan indicates that our income tax will DOUBLE. That is really a concern to me. Not that I mind paying my fair share - but I thought I already was. While I thought we were somewhat "comfortable", I never thought of us as "wealthy". I am concerned that if any of our "wealth" is redistributed, we may face some very serious decisions.

The one thing of which I am certain is this: God is still in control. The heart of the King is in the hands of the Lord. God is our ultimate Provider - Jehovah Jireh. He is our Peace - Jehovah Shalom. No matter what happens, we will praise Him.

Legal cake mixes are expensive.

I threw a little cake together today at lunch and ate a piece right out of the oven. It is pretty good - but I don't think I'm thru with the recipe just yet. Here's what I did:

1 cup unbleached organic flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt
egg replacer for 2 eggs
8 oz. of sierra mist free
1 tsp vanilla flavoring

I baked it in an 8 inch round pan lined with parchment paper so it wouldn't stick. (350 degrees)

Notice, no oil, no applesauce. I really didn't want the apple flavor in this - was trying for plain vanilla. It tastes good. It's a little sticky. John says it reminds him of the shortcake cups that we get during strawberry season. So maybe I'll just call this a shortcake! Yeah, that's what it is! Vanilla shortcake. LOL. It really would be good with some strawberries. If somebody takes this and works on it, I'd love for you to share your results.

Fireworks!

I am seeing fireworks today and they have nothing to do with the election. It is official this morning. I have lost 25 pounds!

We've been eating leftovers all weekend and yesterday. That dressing was as good left over as it was when it was made. However, I am still refining the recipe and I will make it again between now and Thanksgiving so I can share with you. Also, Mark wrote me about an awesome pizza he made! Wish he had taken a picture so we could share. He sent the recipe for the crust and I'll share that later this week.

Work has been pretty crazy in the past week with shipments hung up on both the Northern and Southern border so not much time to do anything except conference calls. No cooking means quick easy meals - cereal and fruit, oatmeal, toast, and leftovers. Maybe tonight I'll cook something new :)

Go out and exercise - your right to VOTE!

Dress(ing) rehearsal

I've had Thanksgiving on my mind lately. We are heading to Gulf Shores to spend the holidays with my folks and John's brother Jack and his wife Pam. Jack and Pam are on the program too and my folks are avoiding salt and trying to eat healthier. I want to cook as close to a traditional Thanksgiving dinner as we can.

Today I made some dressing. It tasted delicious - but I think I can do better. Today I made polenta and baked it like cornbread, added some En-R-G egg substitute, veggie broth, onions and seasonings. I added some faux chicken strips (you could easily leave those out). However, I'm thinking that I can find some plain cornmeal, add some unbleached flour and baking soda, etc, to make a more traditional cornbread and improve the recipe. I'll let you know how it comes out and post a recipe when I make up my mind.

Anyway, we had the "chicken" and dressing, mashed potatoes, and whole kernel corn along with some cranberry sauce (sorry, it was the canned stuff but I am going to do better for the holiday). I added up all the fat grams and for what we ate, even with the faux chicken, it looks like less than 4 grams of fat for the whole meal! That's only 36 calories of fat total. What do you think Mark? Does that sound better?

Kim was talking about making some bread. We've been buying some of the artisan breads that Kroger sells. They are very good- and legal - but pretty pricey. I may look for some bread recipes too.