Sick Day - Noodle Soup

I noticed a teeny, tiny, scratchy throat during lecture last night and by this morning I felt all congested, sore throated and miserable this morning. Nothing sounded better than some soup, so I figured I'd whip up a batch. This is a simple soup, so this tutorial is not to insult anyone's intelligence, but to provide a guide for those who are not so inclined in the kitchen.

First, assemble your supplies. In French this is called a Mise en place and means "everything in it's place" it's makes cooking much more efficient.

The base of almost any soup is usually a mixture of celery, onion and carrot and is called a mirepoix. I didn't have any celery and used olive oil instead of butter as well as added some mined garlic which makes this a soffritto which is the Italian version of a mirepoix  

Method: 

• Mince about 3 cloves of garlic
• Chop about half an onion
• Peel and cut the carrots into little coins
• Cover the bottom of the pan and add the carrots and onions. Let them cook for 5 minutes before adding the garlic so it doesn't burn.

 

•  After adding the garlic cook about 2-3 minutes more
• Season with salt and pepper

•  Pour in the entire carton of vegetable stock

•  Once it comes to a boil put in about 2 cups of noodles of your choice

• Cook about 10 more minutes to cook the noodles to al dente

Hmm, look at that steam rising...

 Of course the soup can be made with chicken or beef stock as well as adding cooked rotisserie chicken.

Enjoy.

Growing in the Winter

After eating some not so ripe strawberries this past week, I began longing for some fresh produce. But since I don't live in a place that supplies fresh year round produce and farmers markets, I have to make due with what's at the grocery store. However, there are some things that can be grown inside during the long frigid winter months. 

Mushrooms: We eat a lot of mushrooms; in lasagna, enchiladas, and pastas, so the thought of having fresh mushrooms is appealing. This shiitake mushroom log produces 1/4 to 1/3 pound of mushrooms every two months for about four years.

 

Shiitake Mushroom Log from Terrain

Wheatgrass: My only experience with wheat grass as a shot at Jamba Juice. But I can see how you can throw a little bit in a fruit smoothie and get the nutrients but hide the grassy taste.

 Grow your own wheatgrass: Via Vanilla & Lace

Sprouts: You can sprout all sorts of things; garbanzo beans, lentils, peas, barley, or Creed from The Office's favorite: mung beans.

Michael: Ok, Ryan, you told Toby that Creed has a distinct old man smell.

Creed: I know what's he's talking about. I sprout mung beans on a damp paper towel in my desk drawer. Very nutritious, but they smell like death.

So if you're a fan of alfalfa (Jimmy John's anyone?), you can sprout your own beans for a similar, delicious taste.

Sprouting Lentils: Via Honest Fare

I think I might try the lentils. Happy Growing!

30 Days of Vegan - What I Ate - Week I

I made it through week one of 30 days of Vegan , and I have to be honest, it wasn't that hard. However, we've been eating primarily vegetarian for about a year, so I already have a large variety of vegetarian meals that were easily made vegan. I think that anyone who eats meat as a centerpiece to their meal, would have a hard time eating vegan. So, for anyone who is interested in trying it, I recommended the vegetarian transition phase. I decided to record what I ate for anyone who is curious about what a week would look like including snacks, desserts and tea (or coffee). Here's what I ate:

Monday

Breakfast: Strawberries, blueberries and blackberry fruit salad with agave

Lunch: Pita Chips and Tabouleh

Snack: Chips and homemade corn and tomatillo salsa and Naked Green Machine Juice

Dinner: 3 homemade spring rolls with sticky rice

Dessert: 3 Back to Nature chocolate chunk cookies with almond milk

Tuesday

 Breakfast: Strawberries, blueberries and blackberry fruit salad with agave 

Lunch: Spring roll and sticky rice

Dinner: Spring mix salad with tomatoes, green onions and Annie's Natural (vegan) Goddess dressing and whole wheat spaghetti with homemade marinara

Dessert: 3 Back to Nature chocolate chunk cookies with almond milk

Wednesday

Breakfast: whole grain toast with almond butter

Lunch: whole wheat spaghetti with homemade marinara

Dinner: hot dogs with chili (both vegan) and onions on a whole grain bun with oven fries

Dessert: 3 Back to Nature chocolate chunk cookies with almond milk

Thursday
Breakfast: Strawberries, blueberries and blackberry fruit salad with agave
Lunch: Chips and homemade corn and tomatillo salsa
Snack: Wasabi Peas
Dinner: Chipotle (burrito bowl with rice, black beans, pico de gallo , corn salsa, lettuce and guacamole)
Dessert: World Market Sea salt dark chocolate (2 squares)

Friday
Breakfast: Toast with peanut butter and banana
Lunch: Chips and Salsa
Sweet Treat: Starbucks soy mocha

Dinner: Soba Noodles with Oyster Mushrooms
Dessert: 3 Back to Nature chocolate chunk cookies with almond milk

Saturday
Breakfast: PB&J on toast with a Naked Green Machine Juice
Lunch: Soba Noodles with Oyster Mushrooms
Dinner: hot dogs with chili (both vegan) and onions on a whole grain bun with oven fries

Sunday
Breakfast: Strawberries with Agave
Lunch: Vegan Chili
Dinner: Chips and salsa and popcorn (I wasn't too hungry, so we just ate some super bowl snacks)
Dessert: 3 Back to Nature chocolate chunk cookies with almond milk

P.S. Every morning, except for Saturday, breakfast was accompanied with a  variety of teas sweetened with Demerara sugar, and a glass of OJ.

This weeks protein brought to me by; beans, avocados, mushrooms, peanut butter, almond butter, almond milk, veggie dog, whole wheat bread, whole wheat pasta, and bean sprouts.

This weeks calcium brought to me by; almond butter, almond milk, sesame seeds, and calcium fortified OJ

Questions or comments? Fill out the form below or send me an email: amynonymous@gmail.com

Eco Friendly Luggage

With our pending trip to San Francisco, and some busted up luggage from our last trip to Mexico, it was time to invest in a nice new set of luggage. And, since you know I'll crazy about all things earth friendly, I searched the web from some eco luggage choices.

Heys Usa Renovo 5 Piece Set - Made from 100% recycled polyester and is biodegradable - $390

Patagonia MLC Wheelie - Fabric made form recycled plastic soda bottles - $229

Ella Vickers Sailcloth Duffle - made from recycled sailcloth from yachts around the world- $178

 

Heys Usa Eco Leaves 3 Piece Set - the shell is made form 100% recycled plastic - $450

Matt & Nat Faithless Bag - Vegan leather and recycled suede lining - $147

You might be put off by those hefty price tags, but rest assured places like amazon and overstock are selling these things at a nice discount. We picked up the Heys Usa Renovo in Charcoal for $250. Still seem like a lot for luggage? We weighed the options and it seemed comparable to other luggage sets plus it had some of the features we were looking for. Not only was it made of recycled and compostable fabric but it's frameless (our other luggage tore right along the frame on our flight to Mexico) and it's lightweight so we don't have to worry as much about weight limits.

Design Day Dream

As if I don't spend enough time on the computer already (8 hrs on a nursing care plan?), I discovered something new I love to do in publisher and that's create my own design boards. Inspired by the mood boards over at Young House Love, I took to scouring the web to try to find beautiful pieces to put together to create a virtual room.This is my first go at it, and I love the results. Taking a natural color scheme of navy, gray, linen, white and natural woods, I love the mix of dark and light and the rustic beauty of the natural elements. Some of the items are completely affordable and available locally: Ikea, West Elm, Crate & Barrel. Some things are purely inspirational: the $2,000 reclaimed wood table and the 4K painting. And of course, I had to include some stylish baby gear. Hey, this could be my future living room, and you know how loud my clock is ticking.

Reclaimed wood dining Table: Sundance Catalog

Grey Sectional: Ikea

Ottoman: West Elm

Tree Stump Side Table: West Elm

Linen Octopus Pillow: Zen Threads

Linen Window Panel: West Elm

Eden Pendant Light: CB2

Ceramic Owl: West Elm (no longer available)

George Kovacs Mercury Table Lamp: Amazon

White Dinnerware: World Market

Hailey Knit Throw: Crate and Barrel

Delta Side Chair: Crate and Barrel

Bamboo Flooring: Available everywhere

Canvas Home Storage Box: West Elm

Recycled Canvas Cushions: Clayton Gray Home

Zig Zag Rug: Calypso St. Barth

Hemp Rug: Calypso St. Barth

Driftwood Hurricane: Anthropologie

Bamboo Mirror: Mecox Gardens

Teak Baby Activity Gym: Cariboo

Bloom Bouncer: Land of Nod

Octopus Triptych: Mecox Gardens