Monday, September 26, 2011

Recap From My 3 Day Weekend

Happy Monday!  I hope you had a great weekend.  I was off work Friday, so I made the best of my 3 day weekend.  I did have full intentions of blogging over the weekend, but that didn't happen.  Here's a few good things that I had over the weekend.  Thursday night we had baked ziti.  I had planned on making Sarah's Baked Ziti, but I didn't want to pull the tofu thing on Tony yet.  I ended up leaving out the tofu ricotta and broccoli...this time.   :o)   Her recipe can be found here.  We love pasta, so I knew this would go over well, and it did.  I can only imagine how good it would be with the tofu ricotta.  Sorry for the dark picture....not too sure why it turned out so dark.


Saturday night we had leftover baked ziti and some fried green tomatoes.  Yum..yum..yum!   I picked some green tomatoes up at the farmers market, since we don't have any in our garden.   I was hoping for a large crop of green Romas like we had last year, but no such luck this time.   Maybe next year!


Saturday afternoon I made some juice with my juicer, which I hardly ever use.   I'm really trying to change that.  Here's what's in it - 2 carrots, 1 apple, 1 pear, 1 kale leaf, 1 tbs lemon juice or 1/2 peeled lemon.  This was sooo good! 


Sunday morning I had a Peanut Butter Chocolate Coffee smoothie for breakfast.  This tasted so much like a milk shake that I almost felt bad about drinking it for breakfast.   If I had a blender at work, I'd be having one of these every afternoon.   Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup cold brewed coffee
1/2 cup soy milk
1 heaping tbs peanut butter
1 tbs maple syrup
1 scoop Chocolate Amazing Grass
1 to 2 frozen bananas (I used about one and a half)
3 tbs hemp seeds
dash of cinnamon.

Blend all the ingredients in the blender until smooth and creamy.   If you don't have any of the Chocolate Amazing Grass, you can always use cocoa in it's place.


This morning I made a similar smoothie, but left out the coffee and used a full cup of soy milk.  I also threw in some frozen cherries....delish!


I had to be at work an hour early today, so I didn't have the chance to really fix anything for lunch.  I grabbed this bowl of Annie Chun's Miso soup.  This is actually the first Miso anything that I've ever had, and I totally loved it.  I can't find Miso where I live, but you can bet that I'll be on the hunt for it at Whole Foods the next time I go.


Here's a quick update on Tony's progress at giving veganism a try.  He went one full week as a vegan...YAY.   We had a dinner at church last night, and he did have some chicken with his meal.  I asked him what his take on the whole vegan thing was, and he said that he was sure that he would still eat meat to some extent, but he wasn't sure how often. For now I'll just keep cooking vegan meals for both of us until he tells me otherwise.   And, as of Saturday he had lost 4 pounds.  I am so proud of him for giving it a try.  At least he is more open to trying new and healthier meals now.

~Peace~

12 comments:

  1. Yea! I bet if he keeps eating vegan at home, eventually he'll go all the way. I have friends who went vegetarian or vegan after their partners kept cooking them vegan meals at home. Paul and I don't eat together because of our work schedules, and that's part of his problem. Plus he's picky as hell. Ugh. Yea for Tony!!

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  2. Yay! Looks like you've been doing a great job of preparing delicious meals to tempt him over! So glad you tried the baked ziti. Trust me, It is great with the tofu ricotta! I'd even recommend just using half the tofu ricotta next time to get him used to it without it being overpowering. Your smoothies always look so creamy and yummy. And that is amazing, 4 lbs in a week!

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  3. Your coffee smoothie sounds insanely good!

    YAY for Tony's success with veganism! I hope he stays "almost vegan" :)

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  4. That's great that Tony gave it a shot! Hopefully he'll slowly transition to it more & more.

    That smoothie looks sooooo good! I'm on day #8 with no coffee & it's tempting me!

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  5. Good for Tony for making it through a whole week - and good for you for showing him delicious eats. Hopefully the combo of enjoying your cooking and the health benefits will make it stick, or at least make an improvement.
    Like Bianca said - my partner was a full-time omni when we met, and eventually he stopped eating meat around me, and eventually he stopped eating it all together.

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  6. Good for Tony! Was it much more work cooking for him as well? Or trying to please another palate? Anyway, I hope he keeps at it.
    The coffee smoothie sounds so good! I always wonder about blending coffee in, but mine usually have greens and that probably would mix well, haha. I may have to try that one though.

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  7. Yaay for Tony's success! Good work with all the delicious healthy food...hopefully he'll continue along the track!

    I have got to try frozen cherries in a smoothie.

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  8. Yum green tomatoes! Lovin the smoothies and juices too!

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  9. Did Tony have a bad experience with Tofu in the past? Did a block of Extra-Firm chase him down the street?

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  10. Yeah for Tony on trying vegan for a week and losing some weight with it as well, fantastic! Wish I liked coffee as that smoothie sounds so good. That miso soup looks great, I too have never had it and will be on the look out if I see it in the store.

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  11. Bianca, I sure hope so. Get Paul to watch Forks Over Knives. Maybe he won't be so picky after he watches it. :o)

    VaVa, Good idea...I'll try half the ricotta the next time. Thanks!

    Amber Shea, Thanks! Love the "almost vegan" thing. :o)

    Molly, Thanks! Are you trying to stop coffee all together?

    Jessica, Thanks! I'm hoping that he will slowly transition into it. So far he is doing great. I've been so impressed with him.

    FF, most of the time Tony was in the kitchen cooking his meals while I was cooking mine. Me cooking vegan for both of us is much easier. Ummm, yeah...I don't know that coffee would be so hot in a smoothie with greens. :o)

    Rose, Yes, you have got to get some frozen cherries for your smoothies...so yummy!

    Carissa, Thanks...I love fried green tomatoes. :o)

    Shen, lol...I think just the thought of tofu totally grosses Tony out. I know it did me before I became a vegan.

    Vegan Mom, you could just make the smoothie without the coffee. I will be just as good. :o) I hope you find the miso too. I can't wait to make my own miso soup.

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  12. Yayyy, a massive success, well done for feeding him up good and tempting him with your vegany delights! I think it's really difficult for people to make a statement like announcing that they're vegan, when they're new to the idea. I think they're much more likely to stick at it if they have the freedom to decide from day to day, and don't feel as restricted and bound by rules. I think you're doing such a wonderful job of helping him transition!

    x

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