korean veganized bulgogi and pickled veggies

About two months ago I mentioned about how I wanted to try to challenge myself to eat healthy on the cheap. When I say challenge I don't mean "for fun" I mean as I really should. Anyway, I had a hankering for Korean Bulgogi which is made with beef marinated in a savory sweet sauce. Bulgogi is delicious but can also be high in calorie and greasy (by the way you can pick up a pretty good pre-marinated beef bulgogi from Trader Joe's). I was hoping to get the same flavor using portabella mushrooms instead and I am pleased to say that it turned out delicious and filling. The ingredients may seem like a lot but you probably already have all of these things in your pantry.

Portabella Bulgogi (with a side of quick pickled veggies)
Serves 1 large serving or 2 smaller servings. Double everything for larger servings.
I basically used this recipe.

I also served this dish with a side of quick pickled veggies which goes great with the bulgogi because the acidity brightens up the really savory and sweet flavor of the bulgogi.

What you need:
2 portabella caps

Marinade:
1/2 medium onion
1 sprig of green onion
1 tbs. of garlic
a little over half of 1/3 of a cup of soy sauce
1 tbs. sugar
1 tbs. toasted sesame seeds (or a little more to save to sprinkle on top at the end. You don't have to toast the sesame seeds but I find that toasted and not toasted makes a pretty big difference because toasted has more flavor. It only takes a couple of seconds to toast them on a hot dry pan. Plus I love the smell of toasted sesame seeds).
1/2 tbs. of sesame oil (optional)
red pepper flakes (I only put a pinch or two but you can put as much as you want depending on how spicy you like your food).
black pepper (a couple of dashes)
ginger (I just used a dash or two of powdered ginger)

** Do not add salt because the soy sauce is salty enough.

What to do:
Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl (or a large tupperware so you can use the lid, shake it up and make sure all of the mushrooms are covered in the marinade). The marinade smells so good. Once it's all combined, add sliced portabellas, lid and shake it (like a polaroid picture).

You don't have to let the mushrooms marinade for a long time (I'm impatient and hungry so I waited like 2 minutes). It's not like meat that requires the marinade to so it can be tender and absorb the flavor. The beauty about mushrooms is that it absorbs flavor really well.

Pour all of the mushrooms along with the marinade onto a hot pan. Let cook until the mushrooms are cooked and the marinade becomes dark, thick and syrupy.

You can enjoy the bulgogi anyway you like. I tried it in a taco using wheat tortillas topped with the pickled veggies and in a rice bowl. Both were good however it is better to eat this with something that will absorb the marinade so rice or a type of bread would work really well. The tortilla can be a bit too messy.

Top with more sesame seeds and green onions if you like.

Quick pickled veggies

What you need:

Shredded carrots and daikon (if you have some). I just used leftover pre-made shredded broccoli slaw mix.

rice wine vinegar (or regular vinegar)

sugar
*use equal parts vinegar and sugar. I just used enough to cover the amount of veggies I used.
pinch of salt

Combine everything and let sit at room temperature for 30 mins.

Nutrition Facts 
Bulgogi Only
for 2 small servings or 1 large serving (2 portabellas)
Cal. 257, Fat 9.51, Carbs 36.34, Protein 11.34 (cholesterol free!)

cooking healthy on the cheap: brown sugar granola

For the past couple of months my wallet has been getting significantly lighter while I have been getting heavier. My efforts at the gym are futile because I have completely abandoned "healthy eating" and it's time to get back on track. I've gained around 5-8 lbs.. boohoo, waaaah, first world problems.. etc.

I'm back in my kitchen (no more getting take out!) and trying to cook healthy on the cheap. When I say on the cheap, I don't mean shopping at Safeway instead of Whole Foods. I mean shopping at the mother of discount store of groceries, Grocery Outlet (a.k.a The G.O). A trip to The G.O. is always an adventure because you never know what kind of items will be available. If you are the type who is loyal to one particular brand, forget shopping there because The G.O. will switch up on you. However, if you are an easy hooker like me, you will take what you can get. The G.O has some really great brands that are cheap. For example, Blue Diamond Almond Milk is $1.49 as opposed to $3-4 at other grocery stores. Also, you can get make up remover wipes for $1.99 as opposed to the cheap Safeway or CVS brand for $3.50, and if you're a fan of Baby Phat, you can pick up perfume at the checkout counter for $7.00. Shopping at my local G.O. is also an adventure because the people that frequent the store are either homeless, dirty hippies (and sometimes it's hard to distinguish homeless from hippie), hipsters, young hip couples, young professionals and professionals (depending on the day). 

Here's a dish-- or topping rather that is quite delicious, versatile and CHEAP and EASY.

I picked up this box of Whole Wheat Berry Flakes and Flax Seed cereal for 99 cents and as you can see all the ingredients are good. Plus it's called Uncle Sam and it was saying to me, "I Want You [to buy me]." 

The cereal is not sweet and kind of boring so I turned it into granola. I was going to make brown sugar brittle but it didn't quite turn out that way.

What you need:

1 box of Uncle Sam's cereal

3 cups of brown sugar

1.5 cups of water

1 tbs vanilla extract

What to do:

Combine the sugar, water and vanilla in a pot on high heat and boil. The smell will be AMAZING. 

After it has come to a boil, turn the heat to medium and cover for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Let the sugar cook for about 5 minutes making sure you don't burn it then add the box of cereal and stir. The sugar will start to cool at this point, remove from the heat.

Spread the cereal on a non stick surface like a Silpat. Make sure you spread it out thin (thinner than this photo) or you will have to wait for it to dry for dayzzz.

I topped some fruit with the granola and it was divine.

The granola was a little chewy but had a great depth of sweetness from the brown sugar and vanilla.

You can save the rest of the granola to sprinkle on top of yogurt, frozen yogurt, ice cream or your lover if that's what you're into.

This dish is good for people on a budget who want to top anything with something sweet and crunchy.

ok friends...

Get ready to be annoyed with attempts at weight loss posts! Since January, I've lost a measly 2-4 pounds and I have kicked up my work outs and tried to count calories again. I have decided counting calories is just not cutting it for me because when I count calories I somehow use it as an excuse to eat junk. My rationalization goes something like this:

I can eat two slices of thick cut bacon because it's 140 calories, which is less than a small bag of Lay's potato chips and about the same amount as two pieces of toast. 


This is bad because bacon has so much fat and after I've eaten two slices of bacon, I want more and to avoid eating more I end up eating a giant scone and I end up in a downward spiral of eating and self-loathing followed by terrible heart burn and acid reflux.

From now on until I go to Coachella, which is in 39 days, I am going to practice healthy eating again.

spinach bean soup

Don't be fooled by my food posts. I have been eating too much junk food and failing miserably at my one month new year's resolution.

I just made a large batch of this soup so hopefully I can get back on track. It's kind of like a white bean kale soup except I didn't have any kale and a I didn't have any white beans, so it's a spinach kidney bean soup (w/assorted veggies).

What you need:

Vegetable stock (1 box for this recipe. You can add water if you need more liquid or add more stock. I recommend stock because stock has a little more flavor than broth)
Can of beans
Mix of veggies (Confession: I keep a bag of frozen vegetables on hand because my fresh vegetables go bad too quickly)
Chopped spinach (I also used frozen)
Half and onion diced
Garlic (optional)

Whole wheat bread
Garlic Clove

What to do:


Saute veggies and onions in a pot. I added liquid amminos for extra flavor.
Pour in box of stock, drained beans and spinach. Let frozen spinach melt. Season with salt and pepper.
Let boil then reduce to medium heat and cook for 15-20 minutes.

Serve with toasted garlic bread. My favorite way to get a hint of garlic flavor onto bread is super simple. Get toasted bread and while it's hot, cut a garlic clove in half and rub the cut half onto the bread. The garlic will melt and the bread will soak in all of the garlic flavor. The bread also has a little kick. This method is also great for making sandwich bread.

It's not the best looking soup but it was surprisingly comforting and pretty good. I know it's hard to get excited about healthy food. If I cooked like Paula Dean of course everything I make would be good because let's face it, anything with a lot of fat tastes good. 

This dish is good for people who don't want to chop anything and want to make soup in 20 minutes so you can start your night watching all of your favorite t.v. shows.

my vices: potato chips and shopping

To satiate my potato chip craving without having to eat a large bag of oily chips I have finally found a way to make oil-free potato chips. I cannot express enough how excited I am for this new discovery.

I finally bought a slicer but it doesn't work very well or maybe it's operator error.

The key to getting the potatoes crispy is to soak them in cold water to get rid of the starch then dry the chips on a towel.

Lay the chips on a plate (not crowding them) and microwave for about 3 minutes but keep an eye on it before it starts to get too brown. Make sure you see a little brown it means they're crispy. Flavor the chips before you put them in the microwave.

You can use a little bit of cooking spray on the plate to make sure it doesn't stick. A paper plate will work as well.

The chips are crispy. They don't quite taste like baked potato chips but you can flavor it with garlic salt or onion salt.

That's one vice I've sort of kicked, now if only I can quit shopping.

New Year's (one month) Resolution update: 

I went shopping two days in a row because once I started, I opened the flood gates. I purchased pants, two sweaters and a necklace.

As far as losing 5 or more lbs. in one month that progress is slow. I've lost 2 lbs. since the first. 

"beautiful on the inside" (i'm sure that is a line in some annoying christina aguilera song)

In every ugly person lies someone beautiful inside. Is that how the saying goes? Anyway, I discovered this website/blog that I feel like my blog is on the inside.

Sous Style

This website is run by Pippa Lord who is the Photo Director for Elle magazine. The website is dedicated to food, cooking and of course the photographs are gorgeous as well as the subjects of the photos.

Good looking, chic and stylish people cooking food. In my mind, this is how my blog looks.

On this website, you'll find recipes, restaurant reviews, household tips and other home-related topics.

This brown rice stuffed bell pepper I had for dinner is beautiful on the inside.

I sauteed (using no oil) chopped bell pepper (I used the caps), onions, garlic, chopped tomatoes and mushrooms seasoned with a little bit of herbs. I then added cooked brown rice and Mary's Gone crackers crumbs to soak up any of the juices. I spooned them into the hollowed out bell peppers (cut the top off, spoon out the seeds and save the caps to chop up and put in the filling). I also made a sweet tomato sauce (similar to my filipino spaghetti sauce, minus the hot dogs) to go with the bell peppers. Put the bell peppers into a casserole dish with the tomato sauce at the bottom, cover with foil and bake at 375 for 40 minutes. Uncover for the last 10 min.

This dish is good for people who are beautiful on the inside and outside.

use whatever is in your fridge stir-fry noodles

I can watch a marathon of "Chopped" for hours. There's something about watching four chefs vigorously cooking ingredients like lamb testicles in 20 minutes only to have their dishes judged by chefs who are more accomplished. I am addicted to this show. Sometimes when I cook I like to pretend I'm on Chopped. I look in my pantry and fridge and see what I can make using only what I have at home. This has helped me not waste any of the food I buy and I guess it fosters my cooking creativity. The result may not always be great but as long as it keeps me fed and saves me money, it's good enough for me.

What I had in my freezer were almost empty bags of frozen vegetables and I really wanted to get rid of them. I also had mushrooms, baby bok choy and these noodles I picked up at the Asian store last week.

The one on the left are Bean Threads made out of mung beans. The bean threads turn clear when they are cooked. They have a sort of rubbery texture and are great in soups. I grew up eating a lot of bean threads typically in a Filipino chicken soup called Chicken Tinola which is ginger and chicken stock based. The noodles on the right are dried wheat flour noodles kind of like a thin chow mein noodle. The best part about these noodles is they are filling, versatile and FAT FREE!

I didn't want to make a soup so I made my weird version of Pancit (which is another Filipino dish, a lot like chow mein). 

What I used:

- White button mushrooms 

- Variety of frozen vegetables: Peas and Carrots, Broccoli and Pearl Onions

- Baby bok choy

- Bean thread noodles and dried noodles (I used 2 bundles of bean threads, one bundle of dried noodles. This makes two large-ish servings)

- Garlic chili paste (1 tsp. or more depending on how spicy you like it. You can also use just plain chili paste or chili flakes)

- Soy Sauce or Liquid Amminos, I used a little of both

- Vegetable broth for sauteeing (or you can use oil)

- A little bit of Sesame Oil (at the end. This is optional)

- *Microwaved Brussels Sprouts - This is also optional. I added this on top because I had leftovers. 

What to do:

Using hot water from the faucet, in a bowl soak the noodles until they come apart and are soft. I recommend breaking up the noodles in half so you don't have really really long strands of noodles making it a little difficult to eat.

Meanwhile in a wok with some vegetable broth, cook up the frozen veggies and mushrooms. Season with soy sauce/liquid amminos, salt and pepper and chili paste. You can add a little bit of ground up ginger. Cook and taste and add seasonings as you go. 

Drain the noodles then add them into the wok. Put the flame on low-medium. Toss and add more soy sauce or liquid amminos if you want. The vegetable mushroom mixture will be a little watery if you use frozen veggies but that is ok because the noodles will soak up all of that liquid making them really flavorful. If the noodles start to get dry and stick to the pan, add a little bit of water or vegetable broth.

Take off the heat and fold in the baby bok choy until it wilts.

baked onion rings and stuffed mushrooms

I grocery shopped on Amazon* and I received a 6 month supply of Mary's Gone Crackers Crumbs. I've already talked about how much I love Mary's Gone Crackers and the crumbs are just ground up crackers and you can use them in place of bread crumbs.

I tried using the crumbs in two dishes.


Baked Onion Rings (oil and dairy free)


What you need:


- Vidalia onions
- 1 cup of Soy or Almond milk 
- 1/2 cup of whole wheat pastry flour (I like to use pastry flour because it is lighter than whole wheat flour. You can also use white flour)
- 2 tbs. of corn starch
- 1 tsp. of apple cider vinegar
- Mary's Gone Cracker Crumbs (or whole wheat bread crumbs. If you use Mary's gone crackers or pre-made crumbs you don't need to season)


What to do:


Set the oven to 450 degrees


Cut the onions into rings about 1/3 inch thick (I haven't received my onions goggles so I was teary eyed once again).


Combine the flour and corn starch in a bowl and whisk in the milk making sure there are no lumps.


Put crumbs in another plate and set up a dipping station.

Dip the onions in the batter, then the crumbs making sure you coat the onion ring. I recommend using a fork when taking the onion out of the crumbs to help keep the crumbs in tact on the onion.

Place on a baking sheet (make sure it is non stick if you aren't greasing the pan. I highly recommend using a Silpat or something like it. Totally worth buying one, you never have to grease a pan. Ever.).

Bake for about 8 minutes, then turn over and bake for another 6 minutes. Let sit for a minute, then enjoy.

These onion rings were super crispy, light and full of flavor. I love how they are not greasy at all and the batter isn't too heavy. 


Stuffed Mushrooms (oil-free)


What you need:


- Whole white button mushrooms stems removed but save the stems!
- Onions
- Seasonings of your choosing
- Garlic minced (optional)
- Mary's Gone Cracker crumbs (or another type of bread crumb)
- Vegetable broth

What to do:


Set your oven to 350-375 degrees

Remove stems from the mushrooms, but save them. Clean the mushroom caps with a damp cloth.

Cut the bottom (the brown dirty) part of the stems, then chop into small pieces. Chop the onions to about the same size as the mushroom stems.


Saute the mushrooms and onions in a pan using vegetable broth. Make sure to season well, but if you are using pre-made crumbs you don't have to season as much. Cook until onions are translucent, then add crumbs. let crumbs soak up any liquids. Taste the filling and season as desired. You can also add a little bit of liquid amminos (which I did) for added flavor.

Bake for about 20 min or until the cap is soft and the top is browned.

The stuffed mushrooms are packed with flavor using the crumbs. 

These dishes required a little more work than I like but if you have time, I highly recommend trying to make them.

*Grocery shopping on Amazon seems like something I can really get into. The only problem is everything they sell is in bulk and I don't really need 200 packets of ketchup or 1 gallon of ketchup.

the (one-month) new year's resolution

1.) Not spend any money on clothes, shoes, accessories, etc. (anything that is not a necessity).

2.) Eat healthier and lose anywhere between 5-10 lbs. 

3.) Finish my thesis so I can finally have a Master's degree.

4.) Be nicer to people, I guess.

These are concrete (aside from #3) goals that I have decided to set for myself for one month which seems do-able. Number 2 is part of a larger goal I have. In about 6 months (June) I turn 30 and I would like to lose 30 lbs. by then (30 before 30, catchy right?). I don't really have a strategy for this except that I am going to mainly do a plant-based oil free diet and more exercise. I've decided to eat this way because when I did a month trial in October, I actually felt really good health-wise. I never felt sluggish, I hardly had any stomach aches and I never had heartburn. 

Numbers 3 and 4 are ongoing. 

I find that blogging about the progress of my goals helps me keep on track even if no one ends up reading the posts.

I think the most difficult of the 4 resolutions will be 1, 3 and 4. Two days into the new year and I almost bought a pair of jeans (but I couldn't find my size) and I was mean to Asians at the Asian grocery store. They deserved it. They couldn't drive their shopping carts like they way they can't drive their cars. It's ok, I can say things like that and have it not be racist because I'm Asian. 

no fuss brown rice bean casserole

This dish involves only one pot, opening packages and cans, NO slicing.

What you need

-Frozen brown rice with black beans. This one I got from Whole Foods but you can use frozen brown rice (fresh steamers) and a can of black beans (liquid drained)
-Jar of salsa (I used medium and that was not very spicy). For two packets of rice, use a large jar of salsa.
-1 can of corn or frozen corn (if using can, drain liquid)
-Corn tortilla (optional)
-grated cheddar cheese (optional). I didn't use cheese in my dish.

What to do


Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour all of the ingredients except corn tortilla and cheese if you're using it in a casserole dish and mix. Crumble corn tortilla on top. (You can sprinkle the cheese on top, then add tortillas).

Bake for 30-40 min and you're done! Let sit for a few minutes to let the dish set (let the rice absorb the liquids).

You don't have to add any seasoning but you can. The corn tortillas get crunchy but a little chewy so you can add already made tortilla chips at the end. I made a plant-based oil free version of this dish and I enjoyed it very much.

Plant-based Diet: The End

Today was the official last day of my plant-based diet trial and as stated in my previous post, I would like to try to keep eating this way, at least when I am at home and when I can help it. So, as a final post for the PBD, I give you... popcorn that sort of mimics this Mexican snack called Durros or Duritos. I've only seen them at flea markets and once in a great while at a Mexican grocery store. The only way I can describe them is that they are like chips (but flour), deep fried, light, airy and shaped like a wheel. You pour this spicy lime sauce into the bag and shake it up and you can't stop eating them. They are usually sold at the stands where they have all the candy that may or may not be contaminated with lead. Anyway, this is suppose to be a "healthy" version of that using popcorn.

What you need:


Air popped popcorn (naked - no butter no salt). By the way you can get air popped popcorn just with kernels and a paper lunch bag closed then put in the microwave. That's how I do it. I'm cheap.
Lime juice (doesn't have to be freshly squeezed)
Tapatio

What to do:


Stir lime juice and Tapatio in a small bowl (and you can add as much Tapatio as your tongue can handle).
Pour over the popcorn and toss. Yes some of the popcorn gets soggy so eat fast and don't pour too much. I actually do like the popcorn a little soggy.

Enjoy with a beer while watching biker dudes make some heads roll-- literally. Tonight's episode of Sons of Anarchy is brutal.

Plant-based Diet Days 25-27: Green Bean Casserole (Thanksgiving Sides)

I only have three days left of the plant-based diet and since it's Sunday, this morning was my official weigh in, so today might as well be the last day. Today I weigh 7.3 lbs. less from when I started the PBD 30 (or 35, if you count my cheating week) days ago and I could not be more pleased with the results. I am amazed that I lost that weight without very much exercise and with all of the cheating I did! I cheated almost everyday, but significantly decreasing my intake of oil, meat and dairy still made a huge difference. So, I have decided that I am going to adopt this as a lifestyle. I will occasionally eat meat and dairy, but certainly not on a daily basis or a weekly basis. I have decided that any food I keep or cook at home will be oil-free, dairy-free and meat free (unless I have guests). I wouldn't call myself a vegetarian or a vegan, but someone who does not often eat meat, dairy, oil or processed flour. 

{Sidebar rant about vegans and vegetarians: I can't stand most vegans or vegetarians because they don't eat meat for really stupid reasons like they don't want to hurt animals or some hippie dippy sh*t. I was watching Iron Chef the other night and it was a vegetarian battle. The competitor was a vegetarian chef but she used like 5 lbs. of butter and deep fried everything. Obviously, she is not vegetarian for health reasons. She might as well eat bacon because it's so much more enjoyable than broccoli drenched in butter.}

Thanksgiving is coming up and my favorite part about the Thanksgiving meal are the sides. I don't get excited about the turkey, not even the ham. The side dishes for me are the star. Over the weekend, I wanted to try to make one of my favorite sides, the green bean casserole, but oil and dairy free. I am really pleased with the result. I have been having a lot of success in the kitchen lately. Either my palette is evolving to like this type of food better, or I am just getting better at cooking.

The Healthiest and Easiest Green Bean Casserole

What you need:

(Serves about 2-4 people depending how much you eat. If you eat it as a main dish like I do, this yields 2 large servings) 

1 or 1.5 14.5 oz cans of chopped green beans

A package of white mushrooms (sliced)

1/2 of an onion

3 Cloves of garlic (or 1.5 TBS of pre-minced garlic)

2 TBS of whole wheat flour (or pastry flour which would work better)

3/4 cup of soy creamer (or full-fat unsweetened soy milk)

3/4 cup (and some) of vegetable broth

1 TBS white whine (or sherry. I think red wine vinegar would also work here)

1 TBS of sage dry rub (or just dry sage, or herbs de provence)*

S&P

2 (or more depending how much you make) slices of sprouted whole wheat bread. I used the ends of old bread I had. 

Onion powder or Onion salt

*You can really take liberties with how you season the green beans. You can add cayenne pepper, use some type of pre-mixed seasoning like Emeril's special seasoning. I found that the sage dry rub gave the beans a really good earthy flavor and went well with the mushrooms. Also, remember to be liberal with the seasoning because since you aren't using any fat, you really want the dish to be full of flavor from the seasoning.

What to do:

Pre-heat the oven to 415 degrees.

THE TOPPING

Tear the pieces of bread and put in food processor to make bread crumbs. Add onion powder and salt (or just onion salt). This topping will give you that breaded deep fried onion flavor without the deep fried crunchy onions.

THE GREEN BEANS AND MUSHROOMS

1.) Chop the onions and sautee/braise in a little bit of vegetable broth along with the garlic and mushrooms. S&P and cook until onions and mushrooms are cooked. 

2.) In a small bowl, whisk the flour and vegetable broth so you don't get large lumps. 

3.) Pour the vegetable flour mixture into the pan with onions and mushrooms along with the tablespoon of sherry. Stir. The mixture gets very thick because of the wheat flour so you will likely need to add more vegetable broth. 

4.) Add green beans and soy creamer. Add sage or any other seasoning you like. Continue to stir and add more broth if the mixture gets too thick. The mixture looks a little weird and almost too thick but you will cook off the flour flavor in the oven.

5.) Pour the green bean mushroom mixture into a casserole dish and top with the bread crumbs. 

6.) Bake for about 15 minutes or until the bread crumbs are browned.

The bread crumbs brown without butter or oil and still gives a little bit of a crunchy texture to contrast with the creamy green beans.

You will end up eating a lot of this dish :)

Next I want to try:

Stuffing, Whole-wheat pizza dough and cupcakes (which is going to be a huge challenge!)

Plant-Based Diet Day 24: Fashion trends to get excited about

I had a terrible affair today and like all affairs, you go home at the end of the day trying to wash out the dirty-- in my case sweat it out on the bike.

This morning I had another record low weigh-in, but I am pretty sure it will all go up again next week... but for now here's the stats:


Weight Loss since Day 1 of PBD: 7.3 lbs.
Total weight loss since I've been tracking my weight back in March: 30 lbs.

I went down one pant-size a couple of months ago and I didn't blog about it because I had only bought one pair of jeans so I wasn't sure if I really did go down a pant-size. But, I recently went shopping for a bunch of pants and I guess I have officially gone down a pant-size.

Since we are on the subject about pants... I have noticed a couple of trends I am super pumped about. First, I should say I am OBSESSED with fashion blogs and I have no idea why. One day, I just stumbled onto some random girl's blog and she posted her daily outfits, then the next thing I'm following like 20 girls and spend most of my work day looking through their blogs. The girls are all skinny bitches with perfect skin.
Anyway, I have seen the girls on these blogs sport elastic waisted pants and skirts. If elastic waisted pants in jersey material come back, I will be in heaven. It'll be like wearing sweat pants. I'm also excited about boxy sweaters and tops and no more super-tight-the-girls-are-popping-out-and-my-back-fat-is-showing tops.

Plant-based Diet Day 23: Domestic

How domestic am I that I am making and freezing my own frozen dinners to bring for lunch? Pretty damn domestic.

This generic food saver I got from Woot.com during a Woot-Off is one of my favorite purchases ever.

Plant-based Diet Day 22: Eventful Night

Last night I skipped dinner.
I cheated at Lunch.
I spent the entire night laying on the couch flipping channels (I know, how 90s of me).
I fell asleep on the couch.
I fell asleep watching Gillian's 30 Day Shred Workout video On Demand. I didn't fall asleep working out, I was already laying on the couch when I turned it on and said to myself, oh yeah, I could totally do what she's doing.

On the bright side, I hit another record low weigh-in.

Plant-based Diet Day 21: I had an affair

Day 21 Rundown:

1.) I'm coming clean and I had an affair. At Sizzler of all places. I was at a lunch with my family for my dad's bday. I had plenty of options, but yet, I couldn't resist.

2.) I tried to exercise away the guilt of the affair.

3.) The latest episode of Boardwalk Empire has unnecessarily a lot of boobies.

4.) I started a Tumblr a few months ago and decided to tell you now. I don't know why I started one. I guess because all of the kids are doing it. I have no followers and I follow one person. You don't have to follow me. I don't care.

5.) It's going to be one of those nights I can't sleep.

6.) I spend too much time on the computer and I am going to try to quit.

7.) I made a gigantic pot of Lentil and potato soup. I didn't write down the recipe I just kept adding stuff to the soup as I cooked and tasted. It turned out pretty good, but I haven't really eaten a big bowl of it yet.

8.) I had a really good Saturday and Sunday

9.) This morning's weigh in is what I call an "official" weigh in since it's Sunday morning and I weigh 5 lbs. lighter than when I first started the PBD. I looked back on my previous weigh-ins from when I was counting calories and I lost about 5-6 lbs. a month when I counted calories and exercised everyday. I lost 5 lbs. in about 4 weeks on the PBD (without counting cals or exercising regularly). I'm counting the week I cheated.

10.) I hope you and your loved ones are well and happy. (I wrote this because I need the list to be 10, not 9 because that would be weird. Instead of writing something stupid, I decided I would write something stupid and cheesy but genuine).

Plant-Based Pancakes

I have had this craving for pancakes (and I hardly ever eat pancakes). I wanted to see if I could make a pancake without using oil, butter or eggs and, shockingly, it is possible AND it's good (and super easy)!

You can make this batter the night before and have it for breakfast the next day like what I just did -- but for the purposes of this blog (and an excuse for a night snack), I assembled a stack.


What you need:


1 cup of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour (pastry flour works best)
1 tbs. Sugar
2 tbs. Baking powder
1/8 tsp. Salt
1 cup soy milk
2 tbs. apple sauce (this is the substitute for oil)*
1 tsp Vanilla extract (optional)

*Apple sauce can be used as an oil and butter substitute-- but only for some food. Apple sauce would not work for cookies but it can be used for brownies and I'm not sure about cake.

What to do:


In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients with a whisk.
Add wet ingredients and whisk until well combined (no lumps)

Heat on med-high heat a non-stick pan, then pour batter onto the hot pan and use a spatula to turn. I like to make mini pancakes so I use a small ice cream scoop. The pancake cooks fast (especially the mini-ones) so turn over the pancake after about 30 seconds. 

(Three minis make about one large)

Top with 100% Maple Syrup and the fruit of your choice.

The pancakes were nice and fluffy and not dry at all, which I expected because I didn't use oil. 

I highly recommend this recipe. It literally takes 15 minutes to make and minimal dishes which is a huge plus.

Plant-Based Diet Days 19-20: Tips and Sweet and Sour Chow Mein

I do not remember what I ate Friday, but I think I stayed "good." I do think my cheating may be catching up with me because I am not really losing as much weight at the rate I was when I started in the first week and my weight is fluctuating too much.

What I love about a non-busy weekend is the time you can spend planning your meals and cooking.
This morning I made hash browns with "Sausage"and mushrooms. For dinner, I made Sweet and Sour Chow Mein and it is one of my more successful dishes because so far it is one of my favorites.

Before I share the recipe here are a few tips I've learned while doing the PBD.

Tip #1: Stock your pantry with plenty of vegetable stock/broth...
And always keep it where you can easily reach it while cooking. Cooking without oil has been the most challenging thing for me. I have ruined 2 non-stick pans while "sauteing" onions or just trying to cook potatoes. I use veggie stock as a base to saute or braise vegetables and because it evaporates quickly, always have it on hand and use more when things start to stick. You can also use water but the stock will give you much more flavor.

Tip #2: Seasoning
Stock your pantry with a wide variety of seasonings. Because I've been cooking without meat or any type of fat or dairy, the food can get very bland. When you cook a really good piece of steak, all you really need is salt and pepper but I can't say the same for vegetables or mushrooms. Some of my favorites are chili powder, cumin, paprika, curry powder, grill seasoning, creole seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder and some dry herbs.

Tip #3: Sauces
Like seasoning, keep a pantry full of sauces (which also works for lazy cooking). The must haves are hot sauces (get a variety), soy sauce, tamari or liquid aminos (which I don't have but is highly recommended by the PBD), BBQ sauce, Sweet & Sour/Stir Fry, etc. All of these sauces are oil-free and use wheat flour.

Tip #4: Frozens
I highly recommend buying some frozen vegetables, frozen fruit and frozen brown rice. I have a hard time going through all of my fresh produce before they go bad, so for some vegetables and fruit I buy frozen. I recommend frozen green beans, zucchini, broccoli, strawberries/berries (for smoothies) and frozen brown rice you can cook in the bag using a microwave (this is incredibly convenient). Fresh vegetables, however, do taste much better than frozen.

Tip #5: Canned and pre-packaged
I'm not as concerned about being "green" as I am concerned about being inconvenienced. I like to buy canned tomatoes, canned beans and pre-packaged vegetable mixes. I know buying pre-packaged produces more pollution and I love the rain forest and all, but I like significantly reducing my cooking time better.

Sweet and Sour Chow Mein
1 very large serving or 2 servings 


What you need:


- Broccoli Slaw (pre-packaged and from Super Wal-Mart. You can also cut up your own broccoli, carrots and any vegetables of your choosing. The pre-packaged saves you so much work).
- Onion (a quarter)
- Minced garlic (half a TBS.)
- Fresh pack of chow mein noodles (use the Annie Chun brand because there is no oil and it is within the PBD rules. Also, there are two packs in the bag and I only used one).
- Celery (1 Stalk)
- Sweet and Sour Sauce (a generous 4 TBS)*
- Soy Sauce (2 TBS if low sodium)
- Red pepper flakes (optional)
- S&P
- Vegetable Stock (for braising)

*A little bit of the sauce goes a long way but use your own judgement on how much you use. Just make sure to use enough to coat all of the ingredients.

What to do:


Heat up a wok then reduce heat to medium and cover the bottom with vegetable stock. Throw in the chopped onions and garlic. Cook for about 3 minutes to soften the onion then add celery and cook for another 2 minutes.

Add half a bag of the broccoli slaw mix along with the soy sauce. Cover the wok and cook for about 3 minutes. Season with a little S&P (not too much because you still have to put in the sauce!) The key is to not over cook the vegetables so make sure they still have some crunch. Put the vegetables aside on a plate.

Using the same wok, cover the bottom of the wok with stock and add one pack of noodles. The noodles come out in a block but just be patient it will start to separate after about 5 minutes. Watch carefully and keep adding broth if the noodles start to stick to the pan. Make sure not to add too much broth because you don't want a soup--just enough to not make the noodles stick. Cover and let cook for five minutes, but keep checking (carefully breaking up the block with a spatula because you do not want to end up chopping up the noodles into small pieces).

When the noodles have loosened up, turn the heat from medium to low (this is important because you don't want the noodles to get soggy). Add about two tablespoons of the Sweet and Sour sauce, stir and cook for 1 min. Then add the vegetables and add more Sweet and Sour Sauce along with red pepper flakes. Give it a good careful stir, take it off the heat and serve.

Obviously, you can use Stir Fry or Chow Mein sauce (though it may contain oil), but the sweet and sour gave it so much flavor. For a meat option, you can add leftover chicken (like if you buy the rotisserie from the grocery store) or stir fry some meat with the sauce. Trust me, you do not miss the meat in the vegetable version :)

Plant-based Diet 18: Veggie Sando

Today I had white rice noodles in a little bit of chicken broth and that was my only cheat, and to me, that is just flirting with someone when you're married.

I went out to happy and after having almost 3 beers, I was really hungry. That means if I had drank a full 3 beers, I would've fallen asleep early but I wouldn't be able to share with you this awesome dinner I just had.

Veggie Sandwich

What you need:

Sprouted Wheat Bread (or any bread without oil. I prefer the Alvarado St. brand. In this case I used hot dog buns, but you can also use regular bread slices).

Cucumbers (a couple of slices)

Lettuce

Pickles

Pepperoccinis

Tomato

Avocado

Red onion

Mustard (I like dijon)

What to do:

First make a guacamole. This is optional but used the guacamole to spread on the bread and it was fantastic. Smash up the avocado in a small bowl with onion powder, garlic powder and salt. Taste and add seasonings as you wish. I also added a couple of splashes of Cholula hot sauce (optional)

Build the sandwich: 

Spread generous amount of mustard on one side of the bun and another generous serving of the guacamole on the other.

Layer the veggies: lettuce, tomato cucumbers, pickles onions and pepporccinis. 

Eat leftover guacamole with oil-free tortilla chips (which are almost impossible to find) but I found the La Reina baked chips at Whole Foods (make sure it's the unsalted kind. The salted have oil).

Weight: +1.2 lbs. from yesterday and that could be from the cheating or from eating salty foods. Anyway, my weight fluctuates throughout the day and throughout the week so I am not too worried about it.

P.S. Tonight, I am watching that show Revenge (the "g" is actually an infinity sign). This show is about a young woman getting revenge on a bunch of rich people in the Hamptons. The dudes wear double popped collars and khakis with crabs on them.