6 month veggie challenge

boil some quartered red potatoes, drain
saute some carrots, chopped onion, chopped celery in a bit of evoo
throw those ol' taters back in, along w a pint of 1/2 & 1/2
stir well - moosh most of the potatoes but leave some of them solid/chunky
boil some corn on the cob, cut off the cob and throw in the soup
toss in some chopped veggie bacon
season to taste (i used salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes)
add water til desired consistency is reached

THEN EAT IT

things i've been enjoying lately:

makeshift salad thingy?
- tj's harvest blend"</> (israeli-style cous cous, orzo, baby garbanzos and quinoa)
- tj's marinated bean salad
- chopped celery

enjoy - delish delish delish and super summery

arugula apple salad
- arugula
- chopped apple
- chopped walnuts
- sliced cucumbers
- broccoli sprouts
- lemon juice
- white balsamic vinegar
- shaved asiago

yum yum yum yum yum

sitting-on-the-esplanade-dock sunset salad
so named for the activity that took place while eating it.

- spring mix salad (mix of arugula, baby spinach, and other lettuces)
- sliced cucumbers
- sliced avocado (how i love thee)
- edamame, steamed & salted
- cubed tomatoes
- sliced mango
- tj's island soyaki sauce

tj's roasted corn & pepper soup
holy crap, it's amazing. the carrot ginger - meh - but this one is gooooood.

and one thing i did NOT like so much - a failed experiment in translating a family favorite lemon-horseradish potato recipe from a cubed, baked version to mashed. not terrible, but not so good (def not the same!)

onward!

long time no see!

i have some unfortunate news to break. brett has backed out of the challenge. not eating meat was literally making him depressed - he said he'd spend whole days thinking about it. so rather than that, i relinquished and let him eat meat.

in a strange turn of poetic justice, we went for indian food the 2nd day of his meat-eating, and he got food poisoning. he was bed ridden for 3 days! it actually sucked, but was kinda funny at the same time.

so, what have i been eating lately?

1. portabello + spinach quesadilla at trident bookstore (delish!)
2. eggplant rollup at mangia
3. homemade potato + leek soup (rando recipe online, had to use up the leeks from my last boston organics shipment)
4. lime and peanut coleslaw from 101 cookbooks - but add a splash of sesame oil and wonton noodles
5. lots of fresh pineapple and watermelon :) :) :)

hope all's well with you kids!

june 19
hello darlings!

so, apparently i'm not very good at keeping this log updated regularly (surprise surprise), but i will try my best!

i've started waking up at 6 am to do namaste yoga that i dvr off of fitTV. it's pretty good in that it's free, not too easy, and it's nice to stretch in the morning. but with the 30 min length, commercials, etc, i'd rather sign up for a gym and go to an uninterrupted, hourlong class. and now that i finally get a gym membership benefit on my health insurance, i'm pretty sure i'll sign up soon! YAY :)

on the food-side, we're doing good! we passed one month on monday, and we're still going strong.

last night we went out for indian food, and i had an experience that i've had a couple of times since being a pseudo-vegetarian: without meat, i eat until i am full, but i never really reach a state of stuffed (which i did often with meat). i don't know if meat is more filling (though i don't imagine so, bc the volume of food i'm eating is relatively similar), or if its density just weighs me down, but now i feel more satisfied than ready-to-burst.

indian is one of the easiest cuisines to tackle as a vegetarian, as many of them are themselves. here's what i got:

- lentil soup
- garlic naan
- saag paneer w/ jasmine rice
- lychee martini :)

delish!

june 10
monday will make 1 month of veggie challenge down!

i know i haven't made many updates lately. i've been busy getting a new job :) times are messy at the ol' office, so all i can do is wish them the best and move on!

since my last update, brett and i have decided that we liked my last entry's weekend picnicking so much, we'd make it an official sunday ritual. here are some typical picnic foods you'll see at a 6-month-veggie-challenge feast:

- fresh, sliced baguette
- brie
- grapes
- sliced cantaloupe
- tj's red pepper spread
- sliced xtra sharp cheddar
- sliced cukes and tomatoes lightly dusted w dill and evoo
- tj's tricolor hummus
- tuna sandwiches
- red pears

mmm delightful! unfortunately, this past sunday was hot-as-hell, so we cancelled the picnic and i idiotically walked my ass to landmark center (beat the T though, that was the whole point) to buy the wii fit! although i suppose i don't really find it to be THAT much of a challenge, aerobically, it is fun and an easy way to inject some simple yoga/strength exercises into your day. the best part is that brett and i get competitive, which makes us do more simply by wanting to one-up each other.



also, since my last update, i've somehow reinvigorated my love affair with cottage cheese. i've gotta get off the bagel train :(

and now, i will send you off with a recap of last night's dinner:

- tj's red pepper spelt with crumbled veggie bacon
- baked zucchini and steamed broccoli
- garlic bread
- prosecco



hope you all are well!

thursday, may 22

- went shopping in dtown xing for lunch, so was able to stop @ cosi for a salad. i didn't realize until now that the signature salad doesn't come with chicken! for those of you who have no had this culinary delight, let me break it down for ya: mixed greens, green grapes, bleu cheese, pears, shallot-sherry vinaigrette. delish!

- went shopping again after work (brett met me bc he needed to shop too), and went to buddha's delight in chinatown for dinner - another vegetarian fake-meat-centric restaurant, this time chinese. it was pretty good (i think i still like my thai better), but if you're having a chinese food specific craving, this'd be the way to go.

friday, may 23

- trekked out to salvartore's for lunch. good pizza, though super-thin crust is not my fave. so far, being vegetarian has had little to no affect on my ability to socialize and participate when it comes to food - you just gotta adjust the sitch to yourself (bring your own veggie burger, order the spinach-tomato-feta pizza, etc).

saturday, may 24

- bomped up to maine for gmas bday party. aunt and uncle were kind enough to order a cheese pizza for me in addition to their sausage. dinner went surprisingly smooth, considering the main entree was chicken. but there were so many sides (spinach dip, roasted potatoes, salad, pasta salad) that i was absolutely satisfied by the end of the meal.

i may have even convinced my mother to do a veggie challenge. she told my dad, "i'm doing it, and if you don't want to, any meat you want to eat you'll have to make yourself!"

sunday, may 25

- train ride home, and i ventured to the snack cart for my first time as a pseudo-vegetarian. thankfully, they too have a lot of options, including a hummus + cracker plate, and a cheese + fruit plate. both were just ok (i mean, at the end of the day it's still train food), but i was pleased at the sheer fact that they were offered.

- when i got home, it was so gorgeous brett suggested to go for a bike ride. so i threw together two little makeshift quesadillas (whole-wheat tortilla, cheese, tuna w/ relish, shredded carrots, alfalfa sprouts, mixed greens all crispified on the griddle and folded in half into a quesadilla-like shape and cut into three triangular pieces), that tricolor hummus + crackers, and a mix of diced apple, pear, and sectioned tangelo. the lunch paired with the weather paired with the esplanade paired with the bike ride paired with the relaxing paired with the leisurely reading of trashy entertainment weekly (SATC movie omgzzz!) was AMAZING :)

- met up with tay for dinner at the beacon street tavern. had fish twice in one day, but oh well! all in all, we got a melted brie, walnut, and pear appetizer, and brett and i shared the fish tacos and the seared tuna. we also split a bottle of a napa cab sauv. all was delightful.

monday, may 26

- brett was not feeling so hot, so i let him sleep all day while tay and i had a "reina picnic" (queenly picnic, reminiscent of our days in spain) in a local brookline park. our totally bitchin spread included cherries (best decision ever), raspberries, baby carrots, sourdough bread, and brie. i think i ate my weight in brie this three-day weekend, haha.

- for dinner, brett was still not feeling completely up to par, so i made a simple soup with vegetable broth, onion, carrots, broccoli, and mushrooms. i made it a little too spicy, but for being a throw-whatever-together kind of dish, it was pretty good. one of the roommates took a summer job @ panera, so she brings home leftover bread and other goodies occasionally. a couple pieces of her sliced baguette with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and chunks of garlic toasted in the oven proved to be an excellent accompaniment.

tuesday, may 27

- lunch of a mozzarella wrap from metro was decent. i can't decide if it was that their spinach tasted unwashed or that their balsamic dressing is disgusting, but i prob won't be ordering it again.

- had post-dinner drinks and didn't get home until somewhat late, so we decided to just go out to the new sushi place across the street, GinGa. i thought it was pretty awesome, brett was underwhelmed. i told him though that it was bc i didn't follow the sushi formula that i know satisfies him best: salmon sashimi + fancy rolls. anyhoo, it was great. almost to two weeks!

wednesday, may 21

- salad for lunch. it sure is a good thing i like so many veggies, because salad is hardly ever satisfying unless it's loaded with toppings. today's consisted of: spinach, plum tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, artichoke hearts, olives, broccoli, 1/2 hard boiled egg, small scoop of barley salad, and a small scoop of couscous salad. it was pretty delightful if i do say so myself.

- for dinner we adapted brett's mom's thai curry coconut soup. in her recipe she says that it's a "peasant soup," meaning you throw in whatever you have lying around, so i thought it would be good to make it and use up some of our veggies before our boston organics shipment comes tomorrow.

our soup went a little something like this:

- dice and boil two potatoes in about 4 cups of water
- add 1 can of coconut milk
- add 1 sliced onion, snow peas, sliced carrots, and sliced mushrooms
- add about two teaspoons of yellow curry powder
- add other seasonings to taste (we used red pepper powder, ground black pepper, and a sprinkle of cumin)
- let simmer for a bit, then serve. top with bean sprouts.

two variations from brett's mom's recipe. (1) she usually starts by simmering sliced ginger root for 1 hr. i really wish i'd remembered to pick up ginger from the store bc i LOVE the flavor and thought the soup was somewhat lacking in that dept. (2) she doesn't typically use potatoes, which makes her soup a little thinner and more soupy. brett liked that we used potatoes because it slightly thickened the broth, making it more of a stew than a soup (and according to the meat-missing brett, more hearty and thus satisfying).

as an accompaniment, i lightly coated slices of tofu in sesame oil, then rolled in a mix of bread crumbs and sesame seeds and lightly pan-fried. top it all off with veggie egg rolls from tj's and you've got our night in a nutshell. mmm!

tuesday, may 20
- lunch from au bon pain, a place i hate but seem to find myself in from time to time because it's right next to work. bought a three dollar salad that was about the size of a baseball, and a cheddar broccoli soup. can someone please explain to me why abp's logic is that a salad merits a free piece of bread but a soup does not? wtf

- after-work party hosted by one of our vendors at vox proved to be good for de-stressing (as free cocktails often are), but in general i was underwhelmed. not to mention i had to abstain from the bacon-wrapped scallops, chicken and steak skewers, and other delights that kept coming around.

- 3 cocktails deep, i get home (and was greeted with "you smell like vodka!"). still having the "let's go out!" itch, i dragged brett to publick house. their veggie burger was relatively good, though i've never seen such a mashed pea-centric patty in my life. it really should have been called "succotash smash patty," sub peas for lima beans.

monday, may 19
- indulged in a portabello wrap from silly cafeteria-esque metro café near my work. it was pretty good, albeit swimming in some kind of balsamic dressing, and in desperate need of some kind of seasoning (maybe even just salt? idk). keepin' it real with green tea as i also try to cut back on coffee (notice the emphasis on cut back, dear god i could never eliminate it).

- midday snack when i got home from work: a peach, some melba toast, and tj's tricolor hummus. ok, trust me when i say that this hummus is the bomb. a layer of red pepper, my personal favorite, a layer of traditional, then a layer of zesty cilantro - which i've never had before, and is AMAZING :) yum yum yum nom nom nom.



- dinner was a improvisational affair - a "sure, throw it in" kind of monday night stir-fry of tofu, onions, garlic, mushrooms, snow peas, rice noodles, bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, sweet corn (from a cob!) various seasonings, and a curry sauce from tj's. despite our flying-by-the-seat-of-our-pants approach, it was pretty amazingly delicious! and i always relish the chance to eat w chopstixxx :)

* side note: last week i signed up for boston organics!. this week's booty is superb, though i wish i got an avocado :(

2 Anjou Pears
1.5 lbs Bananas
1 lbs Gala Apples
2 Minneola Tangelos
2 Navel Oranges
2 Yellow Peaches
1 4oz Alfalfa Sprouts*
2 ears of Bi Color Corn
1 bunch Broccoli
1 head Green Leaf Lettuce
1 5oz Herb Salad Mix

so, brett and i started a 6-month vegetarian challenge on friday, may 16, 2008. this journal is mostly meant to chronicle this challenge - everything from simply logging what we ate, to venting about hankerings for meat, to random musings. technically we're pescatarians (we still eat fish), as the bf would neither survive nor stay sane without sushi. anyhoo, here we go!

friday, may 16
- after the bf's "meat-splurge-on-a-rack-of-ribs-and-consequent-food-poisoning" experience, we decided to bump our veggie challenge up from monday to friday. armed with an organic avocado from a coworker (thanks tara!), i assembled a couple of veggie wraps for myself, the boy, and his friend.

adapted from Cocina de la Familia, a delightful mexican cookbook, here's my recipe for handmade guacamole, which went both on the wraps and on a couple of trader joe's (heretofore known as "tj's") veggie & flaxseed tortilla chips:

1 avocado
1/2 onion, finely minced
1 tomato, diced
splash of olive oil
sprinkle of salt
splash of lemon juice

pit and dice the avocado. add all ingredients and mix. make sure not to mash the avocado and ingredients too much if you like a chunky guac (like i do), but make sure it's mixed enough to evenly distribute the lemon juice/oil/salt sufficiently.

saturday, may 17
- we hung out with my grandparents at syttende mai (norwegian independence day). the "buffet" ended up being the very authentic norsk hot dogs. so, respecting our new challenge, gma and gpa decided to boot outta there and try a vegetarian thai restaurant (i've always been wanting to try anyway) called My Thai (click for my full yelp review!). It was incredible :) I'm sure it will be a go-to whenever we feel the need for meat.

- later, we went to a bbq at a friend's house. armed with veggie burgers from tj's, we thought we were all set. unfortunately, brett didn't realize they were masala burgers, and despite their delightful indian/curry flavoring, they proved unsatisfactory for he-expecting-meaty-counterpart. luckily, there were also a couple of onions, pineapples, portabello mushrooms, and spears of asparagus up for grabs too, so we were pretty satisfied overall.

sunday, may 18
- time for tuna melts! we're trying to remember to get enough protein in our diets, and i think the occasional inclusion of fish will help to achieve that goal. load it up with mixed greens, alfalfa sprouts, cucumbers, pickles, and swiss, and you've got yourself a delicious treat. pair it with fresh strawberries and grapes and you're really sittin' pretty :)

- dinner time calls for a little more decadence, so we opted for an artichoke + halved-olives angel hair pasta, an olive oil/balsamic vinegar/garlic dip with lightly toasted multigrain bread, and a salad of mixed greens (baby spinach, arugala, etc), cucumbers, plum tomatoes, and herbed goat cheese. inspired by "made in spain"'s chef josé, we topped it off w a vinaigrette of orange juice/zest, white balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. add white wine and you have a truly delightful sunday supper.