Posts by admin:
- 1/2 pound thin spaghetti, torn in 2-inch pieces
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 16 ounces diced tomatoes
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 large red onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 3 cups vegetable broth (I used Rapunzel bouillon cubes)
- 1 1/2 cups asparagus, cut in 1 -inch pieces
- 1 cup artichoke hearts, chopped
- 1 medium eggplant, peeled and diced
- 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/2 feta cheese, crumbled (optional)
- 1 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1-2/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened good quality cocoa powder
- 1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 3/4 cup whole pistachios
- 2 oz Earth Balance (1/4 cup), softened
- 3/4 cup superfine sugar
- 2 flax seed “eggs” or 2 large eggs
- –to prepare flax seed “eggs”: 2 Tbsp flax seed meal + 6 Tbsp water–set aside for 3 minutes
- 2 cups grated zucchini
- 1/4 red onion, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 tsp Herbamare seasoned salt
- 6 Tbsp low-fat feta, crumbled
- 1/2 avocado
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 4 slices of Ezekiel bread
- 2 Tbsp Earth Balance Mindful Mayo
- 4 slices tomato
- 2 bunches of fresh spinach
- 2 Vegan Boca Burger patties
- 2 Tablespoons Earth Balance Mindful Mayo
- 1/2 avocado, mashed
- 4 Tablespoons Daiya cheddar or any other cheese
- Dijon mustard
- 4 Sandwich thins or Ezekiel bread
- 8 cucumber slices
- 1 cup baby spinach leaves
- leafynotbeefy.com, 2:15 PM
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My favorite genre would def. be classical (and a few opera that I’ve heard and liked)
- Victoria, 12:42 PM
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I love country!! I have recently discovered Josh Turner and love him!! Of course, my old favorites are Chris Young, Taylor Swift and Rascal Flatts. I absolutely love Classical music, but not as much as country. I love Handel’s Largo(from Xerxes).
Toasted Mediterranean Veggie Pasta
January 25th, 2012
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| 10 weeks and nap time with mommy |
The good thing about this weekend is that we got naps. Yes, we all got naps. I love taking naps with Julianne in my arms. I alternate though so she will not get used to sleeping with only me in my arms.
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| 10 weeks in her bumbo |
Our short week started with quick meals being prepared. Lately I feel like I have my lingo back with creating dishes the way I was before getting pregnant. I look at what I have in the fridge and I whip up something quickly. I love doing that. Many people do not but I enjoy seeing how quickly I can create a meal.
We loved this dish a lot because it had unique flavors and it was VERY filling. It was also very quick to prepare. Hope you give it a try!
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Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti
January 23rd, 2012
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Vegan Guacamole Boca Burger and Creamy Zucchini Sandwich
January 19th, 2012
Hi there! We’ve have lots going on this week. We are preparing for our THIRD weekend out of town. How do we do it, eh? This week has especially been rough. My Julianne has been going through a growth spurt and has been eating every hour and a half. Talk about being sore and tired!
I want to thank Judy for being a wonderful friend! I do not know where I would be without the rocking chair she lent me. I work from it and I feed Julianne from it. Talk about multi-tasking! It seems to be working but boy has it been rough the last 3 days. Luckily she is sleeping at nights, even though instead of sleeping 6-7 hours straight, she is waking up every 3 hours.
How am I doing? I feel blessed to not feel TOO exhausted. Ryan is helping a lot and we are working on meals together or he does them with my direction. He is definitely LOTS of help. I do not feel too much like a zombie. Do you think I look like one?
Every other day we are either eating oatmeal or cream of wheat with some kind of fruit. Other mornings we eat scrambled eggs or an omelet with tons of veggies. I think this is key to feeling pretty awake during the day. I did take a break with Julianne yesterday and napped with her for about 30 minutes. It was very nice!
I want to share with you the last 2 lunches we have enjoyed. If you remember I told you that I really had an aversion to all vegan foods while I was pregnant. I could not do tofu, seitan, or any meat substitutes. I would nauseous. Here I finally have the baby and I have slowly be reintroducing these foods into my life.
I made a Tofu Asian Stir-Fry last Thursday and 2 days ago I made a Boca Burger using their vegan patty. It was delicious!! Ryan was not much into these patties before but he enjoyed a burger with me 2 days ago. I added some creamy avocado and Earth Balance’s new mayo-substitute along with some Daiya cheese melted on it. It was delicious!
Yesterday, I felt like eating a warm sandwich. I had pinned a sandwich idea on Pinterest on my Sandwich board that I knew eventually I would get to. Big Girls Small Kitchen made a Golden Zucchini Sandwich that I knew I had to make.
As I was preparing this sandwich, which was super quick by the way, Ryan came into the kitchen thinking I was making pizza. Ha! I fooled him. I had added some Italian seasonings to the cooked zucchini that made it smell like an Italian restaurant.
Ryan does NOT like zucchini, but really, I have been trying to find different ways for him to enjoy this squash. As he took a bite of the sandwich he asked if the sandwich was made with artichokes. He did not know he was eating zucchini, granted I made it with feta cheese but this sandwich can easily be made with Daiya cheese or any other substitute.
Sorry that I do not have a better picture but my camera battery had died at that moment. You have to make this sandwich.
Zucchini Filling
Assembly
Assembly
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9 weeks and counting
January 13th, 2012
I realize as the week goes by that my blogging is slowing down and it is not on purpose. When I thin about updating you all on our life or of even posting a recipe it is bedtime or I crave the time with my husband after the baby goes down for the night.
We have been eating lots of yummy veggies and eating smaller meals during the day. As a nursing mother, I feel hungry all the time, but it means eating healthy foods and not junk. I am not much of a snacker but if I “see” chips or cookies around I will eat it. I totally have not been making cookies for sure.
Breakfasts look like this:
We have been eating fruit for dessert or even skipping it all together. The thought of putting something together OTHER than dinner is far from my mind.I have lots of yummy recipes pinned on Pinterest, but eventually I know I will try one or two soon.
One of the yummy recipes I created to satiate my baby’s feedings are Green Monster smoothies with added barley. I have been soaking pearled barley and adding them to my Vitamix. They are a meal in itself so I usually have one every other morning.
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| Daddy and Julianne |
Ryan has been helping A LOT with meals. He has told me he really does not usually know what to make but if I give him an idea and walk him though recipes or meals, especially meals I have created from my imagination, then he does pretty well. I taught him how to make an omelette so now he is king of egg making. Thanks honey!
Julianne, our baby, has been doing really well! We have stayed on a good 3 hour schedule that has worked for 4 days now. Yesterday was not a good day and I pinned it to a growth spurt because, thank God, she is back on the schedule today, so it seems.
The morning starts around 7:30am with a feeding and them I burp and hold her for 15 minutes. She then plays on her swing for 45 minutes and then I switch her to the play mat. She has started grabbing at toys and making more sounds. It is terribly precious! After about another 45 minutes on the mat she starts fussing.
I love the fact that I can pretty much detect what her cries mean. Her fussy cries end up being “I am sleepy” cries, so I swaddle her and put her to sleep. I had been having her sleep in the bassinet she sleeps in during the night but this week I transitioned her to the crib and she welcomed it! She even likes staring at her stuffed Captain Kirk doll, given to her by her uncle. Hee hee. She then sleeps exactly 45 minutes, every time! Weird!
Julianne is really, overall, a great baby. She has one meltdown of a day and I do not do well. That was my yesterday. I really felt like she was colicky for the first time, but at the same time she is still going through congestion due to a combination of the heater in our home and dryness. I can see she just does not like the crud coming up from her chest. This crud also affects her after eating. I think it upsets her tummy so them I really do not feel like I can help her. 🙁 We started aspirating with the bulb along with some saline rinses and adding baby vapor rub to her chest, which seems to help. Anyone relate?
After a whole day of her crying in and out and fussing, this mama was VERY tired and I may have shed some tears, but today is a NEW day thank God and it has been a lot better. Maybe a growth spurt? Either way, I have lots of fun with her and she has started sitting on our laps while we eat dinner. it is lots of fun seeing her listen to us as we converse back and forth. She is a cutie!
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Chez Chopin CD winners
January 9th, 2012
