New Years Tradition

                                       

                                       I grew up in Trinidad and Tobago, and my mother always made Black Eye Peas and Rice for New Years Day. I remember, we would go to church, and then she would invite her friends, (who had kids) to come over to partake of her pot! This was awesome for my siblings and I, as we got to stay awake as late as we could, which was always funny because we were falling asleep during the New Years Eve service.
                                         I cannot remember exactly what else she served with the Rice and Peas, but I remember her telling me the reason she cooked it. She said that making Black Eye Peas and Rice would help you have a prosperous year. At least that's what she said the old people would say! I never tried to find out if that theory worked, but I would always remember how good the rice was and playing with my friends. (Oh and telling my Dad that we would see him next year as we left for New years Eve Service. LOL)
                                         Fast forward (too many years to count) and I am married to a man that does not like Black Eye Peas! So each New Years I cook Rice and Peas of some sort. This year though, I decided to spin the rice and peas tradition on its head and make a soup! Especially since we now live in Tennessee and a bowl of soup is very comforting on a cold day.
                                          The main ingredient was the Black Eye Peas, but I also paired that with Swiss Chard. Swiss Chard can stand up really well to being "over cooked" without looking icky. I added some Quinoa to complete the nutritious value, with celery, onions, carrots, potatoes and garlic of course. While making the soup, I could almost hear my siblings say that a soup is not a soup without dumplings, and so I decided to make cornmeal dumplings for the dish. Then I almost heard my siblings again say that soup is not a soup without pasta, so I threw in some elbow macaroni as well.
                                        I ended up with quite a delightful pot of soup, that even my husband could not wait to get some more. ( Yes, he ate the black eye peas!) There was only one problem! I made the soup for our church service and only left one bowl each at some for dinner. Remarkably, with God's help, that 5 quart container of soup fed over 80 people! The good news is that I get to remake the soup and this time I will actually write down what I do to make it so I can share it with you.
                                        So from my family to yours, I just want to wish you a Happy New Year, regardless of what your food tradition is on this day. Oh and let me know if the Black Eye Peas really brings you luck.

The Discipline of Eating For Two and Becoming Healthier During Pregnancy ( Part 2)

                   

                            If you read the first part of this blog (found here) you already know what a struggle I had in the first trimester. Currently however, I am in my second trimester, 5 months along to be exact, and I am still keeping up with the changes I made to my diet in my first trimester. The good news is that I can now eat many things I used to eat (with the exception of the processed vegetarian meat and tofu, which is probably not a bad thing). I am really happy that my appetite has returned, but it has really picked up and with it has come that dreaded word, CRAVINGS!
                         Cravings usually mean to me that my body is lacking in a particular nutrient or vitamin, and usually I can manage them by eating something that is rich in the particular thing that I am lacking and be quite satisfied. However, these recent cravings are ANYTHING but healthy! I think this is where many women find it easier to say that they are "eating for two" so that they can indulge in some fun foods. I cannot type this and make you feel that I am perfect and resist all cravings during pregnancy, because I do not, but I have found a very rational way to handle them so they don't get out of control. My secret phrase to drive away bad cravings is EMPTY CALORIES. Let me explain.
                           After struggling and progressing in my first trimester with food, and making sure everything I ate was intentional and had a nutritious value to it, my second trimester seems like its on a rampage to undo all my healthy eating. In my first trimester, empty calories found no place in my diet. I literally kept a food diary and when food with little value wanted to appear on my meal plans, I quickly replaced it with something nutritious. Now that I am back up and about to everyday tasks, there are many, MANY distractions to my diet. I don't usually eat fast food, but a McDonald's smoothie will catch my eye, a walk down an aisle in the grocery that has junk food on it can set things rolling as well. So how do I keep these cravings in check?

1. Whenever I have a craving, I ask myself if its a Nuisance Craving, or a Legitimate Craving. E.g. If I really want something sweet. Can that need me satisfied with a lovely apple, or do I want to eat an entire pound cake! My first step in dealing with this craving is opt for the healthy alternative FIRST. If the craving has not disappeared after eating my apple, THEN I will consider having a REGULAR slice of pound cake. However, if I already had a Nuisance Craving for the day, and gave into it, then I delay my pound cake for the next day and eat ANOTHER apple. Usually by the time I had two apples, I am so full, I don't want to see anything else. Another thing is that I limit snacks in the house to 1 item. Usually its chips and hummus or guacamole, but sometimes its something sweet, so a small pound cake, or a slice or cake usually suffices.

2. When I am out and about I try to carry some type of fruit or healthy snack with me. However, this does not always work. Sometimes, I leave my house with the snacks, but also with the intention of having a McDonald's smoothie. That's fine too. Sure its filled with many calories, but it does not mean that I have to get their biggest cup that they have! I usually get myself a small mango pineapple smoothie, which can be argued is a healthier alternative than an Icee. Icee's on the other hand (cause I'm on these cold treats), I treat as a splurge item.

3. I have at least one splurge item in my Craving List. For me at the moment its an Icee. I usually don't even have this once a week, but when I do, I quickly think back to how I spent my Empty Calories for that day, and if I felt like I did a good job, I would get myself the smallest size there is. (Target has those really small cups, so I like getting it there), but an icee has no hope of anything but empty calories. Sometimes I can trick my body by making slushies with fruit juices,but there is something about an icee that I like at the moment.

4. If I realized I have used my empty calorie quota for the day / week, I simply tell myself NO! Its all about self control and discipline. It can be a struggle at times, but worth it.

5. Having less distractions, especially at home is good. Usually my cravings attack at night! So I just choose items in my house. Some fruit, yogurt, a spoon of peanut butter, grilled cheese sandwich or cereal. If that cake or sweet treat is there, I refer to step 1.

                      What I realized is that by following my simple rules and steps I don't eat a lot of junk food and make use of my calories well through out the day. My absolute favorite snack these days happens to be a bowl of salad with Italian Dressing, and not the light homemade kind, but the processed store bought kind! ( Now let me say that you can go overboard totally in the other direction as well. e.g I indulged in my newest snack almost an entire day because I was convinced that it was so healthy it could not be bad, and almost fainted by the end of the day because in essence I was not eating balanced..lol).
                     Finally,  do not get discouraged by eating healthier. At one point I felt like I needed to splurge more on empty calories because I felt like I was not gaining any weight necessary for pregnancy. That idea was quickly put to rest when I weighed in on my first appointment during my second trimester and realized I had gained a little more than I thought, which puts me at a number I have never seen on the scale!...lol. However I am not alarmed because my doctor says I am right on track with my weight gain. Plus

I know that part of it is a healthy growing baby and a healthier eating Mom.

The Discipline of Eating for Two and Becoming Healthier During Pregnancy (Part 1)

                              "I'm eating for two" is the most common line of pregnant women today. It has allowed some women to indulge in anything and everything they want, and in many instances, in gross amounts. While I am starting to understand the extreme hunger that rears its ugly head now being in my second trimester, I also realize that lack of planning my meals can lead me into temptations and trouble. I wish I could take all the credit for this new "healthier" me that has evolved in the last 18 weeks, but I'd be lying if I did not say that my vegetarian lifestyle AND my growing baby has a lot to do with it too.
                               Let's turn the clocks back to my first trimester, it was filled with 13 weeks of being sick with my head over my new best friend,  the toilet. Whether I ate or not, nothing seemed to be staying. I tried eating smaller portions and there was no change. I tried eating only familiar foods, and still no change. Naturally I started to become worried, because everything people were telling me to try, was something that I had now developed an aversion to, or something I did not eat. In short, I felt like my body was in extreme rebellion! It eventually resulted in me forcing myself to eat because I knew that the baby needed nourishment. Some foods that seemed to stay with me 80 percent of the time was pre-made soup like the Campbell's Chunky Vegetable soup if I added enough water to it, almond milk, bland crackers, water and bread with very little butter or jelly. Weird enough, a Lenny's vegetarian sub...was probably my only saving meal in a day when nothing would stick!
                              It was early in my first trimester that I realized the value of being intentional in the items that I did eat, because there was no guarantee that it would stay down long enough for me to get any nutrition from it. Everything I ate had to be of a nutritious value because I wanted it to count! So things that I took for granted I changed. One example of this was with my Lenny's sub order. I must have eaten that sub at least once a week for 13 weeks! So instead of getting it on only plain white bread, I opted for whole wheat instead. I changed my regular bread in my home from whole wheat to whole grain, I even did that for the crackers (did not know they had whole grain crackers), watered down my Campbells Soup and drank lots of water and little or no juice (I believed that my water was in my juice so would drink more juice than water during any given day). I also stocked up on lots of fresh fruit from the farmers market, so that whenever I craved something sweet, I would grab an apple, banana, mango, orange, plum, strawberries or grapes instead of eating something processed. My body was also rejecting every known processed vegetarian meat as well as tofu, so I relied heavily on trying to fit in green leafy vegetables, peas and beans. My changes obviously affected my pantry as well. Out with the regular white rice, granulated sugar, regular pasta, and in with brown rice, quinoa, brown sugar and whole wheat pasta. I was determined to eat for two not by eating larger portions and nutrient deficient meals, but by eating nutrient dense items to help the baby grow!
                         With all the ups and downs of my first trimester, and struggling just to eat for one, I expected to weigh less at my 12 week appointment than I weighed when I found out I was pregnant. However, when I weighed in, I was shocked to see that I had actually gained 5 pounds! Even with the changes I made, I was not throwing up any less, and my appetite had not improved either. But thank God the baby was developing well and my nutrition was right on track.

Stay tuned for Part 2 and click the picture to be taken to a healthy article about eating for two.
                        

You can conquer Tofu and a Quick Stir Fry

                  So is Tofu giving you the run around? One minute you order it at a restaurant and it tastes sooooo great, then when you try to make it at home, it sits in your fridge, you give it to the dog or you toss it with yesterdays papers. I have been there, and I have done that, except I don't have a dog. So many times it remained in the fridge for a couple days, until I got tired of looking at it and then tossed it. (Yes, I know, shame on me. I admit, I am ashamed).
                    However, despite all the bad tofu experiences,  I never gave up. The epitome of my tofu experience came while in culinary school (big surprise there). We learned there that not only should you season and marinate tofu (which I did sometimes), but that a good way to cook Tofu is to make sure you get a good golden pan sear! In essence you are taking the same technique that you would use to pan sear meats and apply that to tofu (Firm tofu usually works best).
                    What does it mean to pan sear? Searing (or pan searing) is a technique used in grilling, baking, braising, roasting, sauteing etc., in which the surface of the food (usually meat, poultry or fish) is cooked at high temperature so a caramelized crust forms.  With the addition of bold spices and seasonings, you can take your boring tofu to exciting bites of yumminess! The searing technique creates a visual improvement on your dishes, an interesting texture depth, and seals in and enhances flavor. Now, cooking and eating tofu is no longer a chore, but a delight!
                     In light of this, a couple of days ago, I was feeling for an Asian inspired dinner. I whipped up a A Tofu and Vegetable Stir Fry and served it with some noodles. I had not cooked tofu in a long time and thought that it would be nice to share one of the ways I prepare it, focusing on the tofu cooking techniques. Hope you enjoy!

Tofu pairs especially well with Sesame Oil and Seeds. Other lovely pairings are scallions, teriyaki, soy sauce, mushrooms, ginger, garlic.

Ingredients

1 box tofu (Firm), diced in medium cubes
1 head of broccoli, bite sized florets, blanched
1 zucchini, sliced in half moons
1 carrot, sliced in rounds
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 medium onion, julienned
2 cloves of garlic, grated
5 baby portabello mushrooms, sliced
1 package of your favorite noodles (you can serve with rice if you wish)
1 green onion, sliced
3 tbsp mushroom stir fry sauce
2 tsp sesame seed oil
2 tsp sesame seeds
vegetable oil (you can use peanut oil if you like)
Sweet chili sauce (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Spices/Seasoning for Tofu

1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp sesame seed oil
1 tsp Chinese five spice
2 tsp mushroom stir fry sauce
1 scallion, sliced

Method
1. A couple hours before, or if possible the night before, cut tofu into medium cubes, and add all the ingredients for seasoning the tofu. Just toss the bowl with ingredients as you don't want to break up the tofu. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
                         

2. Cut and slice all other ingredients, keeping them separate.
3. In skillet, or wok, heat up a little vegetable oil, enough to coat the bottom of the pan. When it is hot, add the tofu. Do not stir as yet. It would start to brown on one side, making it easy to just toss the skillet to move tofu around. Remember you do not want to break the tofu up any smaller (however it can happen).

                         

5. Once the tofu has got the color you desire, start by adding the onions, let it cook a little bit, probably a minute. Then add the garlic, mushrooms, sweet peppers, carrots and zucchini. While that cooks, make sure to add salt and pepper to taste as well as the sesame seed oil and the mushroom stir fry sauce.  Cook at least 5 minutes.
6. Add the broccoli and sesame seeds and turn off the stove. The heat will warm up the broccoli if you blanched them prior. (Blanching allows the broccoli to get and keep a bright green color. To blanch, place a pot of water to boil, adding enough salt to taste like the sea. Meanwhile, get a bowl with ice cold water ready. When the water is boiling, add the broccoli for a few minutes, probably 2 to 3 minutes, but no more than 4. Drain broccoli and immediately shock them in ice cold water which will stop it from cooking).
7. Taste your dish, adjust seasonings and serve over your favorite noodles or rice. I added some sweet chili sauce to the top of each serving just to add more flavor.

P.S. Wait till you try this dish the day after you cooked it. Sure the day you cook it is good, but the next day its just great!

Fresh Cranberries and A Muffin Recipe.

                        Don't you just love the Ocean Spray cranberry commercials? I do, and when I visited Walt Disney World's Food and Wine Festival in 2011, there was this spectacular display, shown in the picture above, of a live version of a cranberry commercial! It was the first time I saw this in real life and was pretty amazed. It was hard not to pass the display, as the sun made the cranberries almost glisten like red rubies in a huge box! That experience started me thinking of all the ways that we can use cranberries, and other things that compliment them. Other than drinking various mixes of cranberry juices, we are used to cranberry overload during the holidays. So, with the holiday seasons upon us, it was not very surprising today, when I visited the farmers market, that I saw bags  of fresh Ocean Spray cranberries for a dollar. (Needless to say I bought a couple bags)
                         More than likely, like most people, I am going to make my own cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving this year. So I washed the cranberries, dried them and froze them so that I can use them in the next week and a half or so. Then I took the rest and used them in some muffins for breakfast for my husband (he likes muffins). From what I have read, using fresh cranberries are more effective in protecting our cardio-vascular system and they are full of antioxidants! It is also high in Vitamin C, and so I am sure adding orange juice to the recipe just makes it that much more full of Vitamin C.
                         I decided that I would make vegan Cranberry and Orange Muffins for my husband. You may not have to go completely overboard like I did to make it vegan, but trust me, they taste really good and are much healthier than using eggs, butter and milk. Below I describe the method I used. But before I share my recipe, here is just a list of other ingredients that cranberries pair well with.

Cranberries go well with Cinnamon, Ginger, Honey, Lemon Juice, Maple Syrup, Orange, Sugar, Vanilla and Walnuts.

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

2 cups of flour, sifted (all purpose works well)
1 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups of chopped cranberries
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts

Wet Ingredients

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg (for vegan use Ener-G egg replacement. Follow box description)
1 fresh squeezed orange (yes, without the seeds)
1/2 cup of pineapple juice
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
approx 2 tsp orange rind
Sugar to sprinkle on muffins before baking (optional)

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 350
2. Using two bowls, measure out all ingredients, dividing them between wet and dry. You should add the walnuts and the cranberries to the dry ingredients. Make sure to mix wet ingredients well. If you are using the egg replacement, mix it separately until frothy and then add to wet ingredients.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and using a spoon fold gently until all dry ingredients are incorporated.
4. Line your muffin tins with the individual cupcake liners, or you can use your cupcake tins for smaller portions. I usually pray the inside of the liners lightly.
5. Using an ice cream scoop (depends on the size muffins you want and tin size), portion out equal amounts into each. At this point you would sprinkle with sugar if you want.
6. Place in oven, and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top of the muffins bounce back when you touch the top.
7. Place them on a cooling rack and cool properly before storing. I like to store mine on a glass plate under a  glass dome cover, so we can just grab it and go. However you can store them in plastic containers with covers if need be.
8. Take a bite and enjoy!


Let me know how this recipe worked for you.

                       

Chock-full of History and Pancakes.

Sweet Potato Pancakes at The Arcade Restaurant, Memphis, TN

                                        On the 45 minute flight between Atlanta and Memphis, my mind started wondering about breakfast. Eric said he would take us for breakfast when we arrived, and even though my stomach disagreed about having an earlier breakfast ( at 5 am), it was finally 8 am and all I could think about was food. As I munched on some Air Tran cookies (I swear those cookies are divine), my mind immediately sought comfort in the idea of eating a familiar meal in a strange place. I hoped, that we were headed to an IHOP or Denny's, so I started thinking of what I could eat there. After a couple minutes, my mind was made up. IHOP it was. I sat back  and mulled over my decision and the psychology of the matter.
                                        After pleasantries, Eric mentioned the magic word "Breakfast" and so we were off to Downtown Memphis. As we drove, it became apparent that we were not heading to a restaurant chain, but rather a local diner. This was not quite what I had in mind and braced myself for the worst. Little known fact about me is that even though I like food, I am not a very adventurous eater even though I like to think that I am (even as a vegetarian). Don't get me wrong, I love to try new dishes, but I am extremely picky about where I eat. Not only that, but I am also notorious for ordering similar dishes at different locations.
                                         When we arrived, I was a bit skeptical, but as we approached and then entered the restaurant, I fell immediately in love with the history of the place (I love anything historical). Eric took us to the Arcade Restaurant. You can read in detail about them via their website at http://www.arcaderestaurant.com/about.html There were many interesting and famous people that ate at this restaurant in times past. There was even a booth dedicated to Elvis because they said every time he ate there, he ate in that booth. The restaurant was also used in many movies, some of which I have seen, but probably was not paying that much attention to notice it. Most interesting to me was the fact that the tables had never been resurfaced since they opened, and they were not in bad shape either. After ordering what I wanted, I continued to read about the restaurant in their menu.

                                 

                                               
                                           
                                            I decided to order the Sweet Potato Pancakes with grits and scrambled eggs. I had never had sweet potato pancakes. Truth is, as Un-American as it may be, I am not a big fan of pancakes. However these pancakes were more than I expected. They were not overwhelmingly tasting, but still had enough sweet potato that I wondered if it was "real sweet potato" or straight from the can. It was also soft and pillow like and I did not even have to use the syrup. I did taste it with the syrup and decided that it overpowered the subtle taste of the pancake with too much sweetness. Maybe a little bit of melted butter on the top of them would suffice. The grits were not really to my liking as it was very goopy, but I chalked this up to the fact that they were a little cold. The eggs however were perfectly scrambled. They looked like they were done in a skillet, but tasted and had the texture of scrambled eggs that were steamed. They were not runny, but not dry either. Just perfect, and I even told my husband that the eggs were perfectly done. The hash browns were just not worth mentioning as I really did not like it, so I did not eat it. The portion serving was much bigger than my stomach's eye could fathom, but even though I could not finish everything, I made sure I stuffed myself with pancakes and eggs. The pancakes and the eggs alone were worth the visit, not to mention the idea of eating in such a historical place.

                                         My husband had french toast instead, and even though I did not sample any of his food (which is very rare), I really liked the almost rustic presentation of this loved classic. They also used french bread in their version!

Overall, I really loved this little historical gem and I am actually looking forward to going back to get their pancakes again, and maybe even try their french toast. Their pancakes was by far, the best thing I ever ate. 

                                        

Green Bananas with Sauteed Spinach (Simple comfort food)

Many times I do not feel like eating rice, or anything considered traditional like potatoes for dinner. So I usually do an easy but substantial meal, that's really simple to cook! The good thing about this simple recipe, is that you can use potatoes instead of green bananas, or even use some other type of root vegetable. It looks like a small portion, but believe me, you will be full after eating a little bit of this. 

Ingredients 

6-7 green bananas

5     cloves of garlic, grated

1/2  yellow onion, diced

1     sweet red pepper

1     bag of spinach (you can decide how much you want to use, remember it wilts down to close to nothing)

salt  and pepper to taste

1/2  cup of water

vegetable oil

Method

1. Place the green bananas to cook by boiling them in a pot with some salt added to the water. (see pic below)

2. While that is cooking, gather, cut and dice all ingredients (the pic below shows the green bananas peeled after cooking)

                         

3. Slice the bananas and set aside once cooked.
4. Saute the onion, garlic and pepper in a saute pan with some olive oil for 3 minutes.
5. Add the green bananas and mix all ingredients well. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Add water and cover. Turn heat down to a simmer for 20 minutes.

                          

7. While the bananas are cooking, saute the spinach lightly. You don't want to overcook it. You just want to wilt them. Make sure to season with salt and pepper as well.
8. To assemble your dish, place spinach on the bottom of the plate and top with the green bananas.