Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Frooty Loops!

The other night, I prepared 3 cups of brown rice and divided it in two and put it in the fridge. Yesterday, threw one container in a pan with a little bit of Trader Joe's Salsa, some red pepper flakes and a can of black beans. I cut up some lettuce, tomato, avocado and we had burritos. (I took pics, but I lost the camera in a tiny apartment...) The rest of the rice is for fried rice this weekend. Making rice in advance saves about 30 minutes of cook-time. It's also better to make fried rice with cold rice.. I think.
Mat worked an over night yesterday and is working another tonight and tomorrow. It has thrown off his sleeping and our eating schedule. When he woke up this afternoon he wanted breakfast. He didn't want eggs or biscuits and gravy (which I am making for his birthday tomorrow at some point!), he wanted Cereal. I had to pick up an Rx at CVS so we stopped at Jewel on the way home for Cereal. We spent 5 dollars on a family size box of Froot Loops. YES Froot Loops. I LOVE Froot Loops and haven't had them since Freshman year at Eastern in the dorms. I liiiveeed off of Froot Loops then. I only eat them dry though- not because I can't and hate to drink milk. I have never liked milk with my cereal. I also like to divide them into color piles and eat the blue ones first and the orange ones last.. I like to eat it in handfuls out of the box. Let's hope I don't fall back into that habit.

Jack likes Froot Loops too.

By the way, these are great from IKEA.. for dry goods and they are super cheap. I used them for rice, oats, pasta etc. That way you can buy those things in bulk and save mucho dinero!



Anyway, I am making biscuits and gravy tomorrow for Mat's birthday brunch. I have always used vegetable broth to make the gravy, but I don't have any here. I don't want to have to spend more money..because, well, that's the whole point.. Can I make gravy with just oil/butter, flour, rice milk and seasonings? I have biscuits in the freezer and Gimmie Lean Sausage in the fridge. I will give it a try!

Happy Birthday Mat! xoxo

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Oops.



Due to an unexpected visit from friends, we ventured downtown to have drinks at the Signature Room on the 95th floor of the Hancock building. Beer was $8.75 a bottle and my cocktail was $12 and came in a champagne glass. We each had two.. Enough Said.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Italian Fiesta.

Amongst that glorious Sunday afternoon of shopping and blogging, I made a extremely creative non-dairy, veggie Lasagna (not vegan due to the whey in the soy cheese I used) for later this week and Pesto for dinner last night! We will begin with the Lasagna. The original recipe comes from Conveniently Vegan by Debra Wasserman. Debra uses re-fried beans in place of ricotta. The beans also provide an amazing amount of protein. She also uses cooked spinach and rolls the noodles into pinwheels, places them into the pan and covers them with sauce. I altered her recipe by keeping the traditional style of layering the noodles and used Zucchini instead of Spinach. I also threw in some Soy Mozzarella to add some ooey-gooey deliciousness, although Soy cheese often has a hard time melting... I also flavored my beans with garlic and "italian seasoning," because I find the original recipe to be a little too "earthy" tasting.

My ingredients 
  • 2 small-medium zucchini
  • 1/2 box of Lasagna noodles (8 oz, most boxes are 16 oz)
  • 15 oz can of unflavored vegetarian re-fried beans
  • 26 oz jar of pasta sauce ( I used the Jewel Garden Vegetable brand/flavor-already has carrots,onions zucchini in it)
  • 1 large clove of garlic, crushed
  • 1-2 "shake"s of dried Italian seasoning
  • 1 bag of veggie Mozzarella or 1 chunk grated
  • 9"x 11" glass pan
  1. Wash and slice Zucchini length-wise into thin strips
  2. Boil Zucchini for 2-5 minutes to cook and get a lot of the moisture out (we don't want runny lasagna)
  3. Place cooked Zucchini on paper-towels to collect moisture
  4. Cook Noodles as directed and make sure to add a little olive oil to the water so they don't stick and fall apart.
  5. While Noodles are cooking, saute the garlic, add the beans and "italian seasoning," mix well. The warm beans are also easier to work with because they are soft.
Everything is now prepared. I skipped the pre-heat oven step, because I am freezing this for a later date. I would cook at about 375 degrees for about 45 minutes, until everything is hot and melty.

  1.  Pour a thin layer of sauce on the bottom on the pan
  2.  Tightly place noodles across pan
  3.  With a rubber spatula, spread a layer of beans on each noodle
  4.   Place a layer of Zucchini on top of each bean layer
  5.  Another layer of sauce
  6.  A little cheese
  7. Noodles and continue process how ever you please
  8. Top with sauce and more cheese

Cover and freeze or bake and eat! We will be eating it sometime soon. Makes about 9 large servings (3-4 meals! for 2!)

*The pesto I made was great.. just a classic pesto recipe, with Walnuts instead of Pine-nuts. I tossed in roasted potatoes and asparagus at the end with the pasta. (pesto with potatoes= sooo good!)
When making the Lasagna I cooked the whole box of noodles and didn't know what to do with the rest. I cut the noodles up and used them with the pesto. Looked funny, but tasted delish!


Mat made breakfast- Scrambled Eggs, Fakin' Bacon, and Hashbrowns. Time to eat!

Didn't eat enough sandwiches this week?

Make croutons!

Had some bread left over from last week's pasta dinner and thought I would make croutons. The bread was a little old and wouldn't even slice-just a huge crumby mess all over the counter. I realized that I had about 4 slices and a heel of soft-sandwich bread in the fridge from well before Mat even arrived. Dad usually made his croutons out of an unused baguette or "day old" bread from the bakery, but I thought I would give this a shot. I wasn't sure how it would work out due to the softness, gluten-level, moisture-content, air, whole-grain business that this store-bought bread consumed, but I gave it a go anyway. I sliced them into cubes, tossed them in olive oil, sprinkled "italian seasoning," salt and pepper on top and popped them in the oven at about 300 degrees (just as Dad suggested!) Stirred them around a few times and waited till they browned. I also sprinkled a tiny bit of parm on top, then threw them in a container. There they will sit waiting for a beautiful salad later in the week!

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Post-Shopping Summary.

Jewel-Osco trip was very successful. Even got a Jewel card that saved me $5.07. I spent $76.00, but got enough food for at least 6 dinners, 7 breakfasts, snacks and and left-overs for lunch. The cashier was a very interesting character. I listened as he asked every individual in front of me in-line what they studied in college and then threw them a trivia question pertaining to that subject. The guy in front of was a Physical Therapist Major and was asked, "What is the largest muscle in the body." The response was the Gluteous Maximus. Then it was my turn, I debated which subject to tell this dude I studied.  I told the truth and said Psychology, knowing that I can barely remember any definitions or theories. He asked me what "Acrophobia" was. I went through my list in my head and battled with Agoraphobia and Arachnophobia and nailed it on the head! Fear of heights! Good guess. That guy amazed me. I hope to be in his line next time and I will say "GYNOCOLOGY!" (even though I didn't study that..)


Anyway, I successfully purchased everything on my list except a few things, but wisely substituted those things..

  • Yellow Squash Zucchini 
  • Green Pepper  Potatoes (they substitute each other well due being Mat's faves)
  • Tomato Avocado (both fruits that pose as vegetables)
  • Oats   Crunchy Noodle Things (pushing it!)
  • Bread Tortilla chips (I am reaallly pushing it)
  • El Tapatio Hot Sauce -Do I need an explanation!?
  • Apples &Bananas were the fruits on sale and go well with the ENORMOUS jar of P.B here

Grocery Shopping Trip #2

Third week in Chicago, no job still. Had three interviews at restaurants last week. Call backs are tomorrow. Budget has become even tighter, due to the approaching of October. Not only is Rent, Cable/Internet, Electric, and 2 parking tickets due October 1st, Mat's birthday is that day as well. Did I mention that Mat's last check from the Royal Oak store is somewhere between Detroit and California and has been for well over a week!?
We have enough food in the apartment to make one peanut butter and jelly sandwich and some pasta. I have some dried goods and I think there are some random things for smoothies in the freezer as well. I made tofu and broccoli fried rice last night and would like to make pesto tonight. I am about to head to the Jewel-Osco (equivalent to a Safeway, Kroger or a Spartan Store) for some groceries. Man, do I need a shopping cart.. although only being able to buy what I can carry is an advantage to us at the moment.
This week I will make croutons from left over bread, pesto, vegan lasagna, yellow squash something or other, breakfast sandwiches x5 and we will see what else comes along. I tend to get creative at the last minute...

Shopping List-(pre-store)
  • Eggs
  • Cheese (soy and dairy)
  • Tofu
  • Vanilla Yogurt (soy and dairy)
  • Gimmie Lean Veggie Sausage
  • Refried Beans x2
  • Lasagna Noodles
  • Lettuce
  • Spinach
  • Broccoli
  • Baby carrots
  • Green Pepper
  • Yellow Squash
  • Tomato
  • Lemon
  • Basil (already have walnuts, going to use those in pesto instead of Pine Nuts like Mom used to)
  • Fruit (whatever is on sale)
  • Oats
  • English Muffins
  • Bread for P.B sandwiches (Mat's lunch..)
  • Ground Pepper
  • Tortillas

I have yet to mention the difficulty level of cooking for two picky vegetarians. Mat has texture issues and will not eat cooked Tomatoes, Spinach, Onions or Raisins. I can't/won't eat a lot of dairy and Mat loves the real thing a little too much.  Mat likes everything well done, overly cooked while I like it fresh, almost raw-with nutrients still intact. Mat could live of a potatoes and contributes that to his Irish heritage. I am not a fan unless they are slathered in butter and salt or deep-fried and that never makes my stomach happy. We do agree on eating mostly vegetarian, eating breakfast everyday and keeping Mushrooms as far away from out kitchen as possible. We also have an "I cook, You clean" agreement, which is beneficial either way. Mat makes better breakfast than I do..but don't tell him that.  I don't know how to make coffee, I am convinced that that part of my brain is damaged. Mat needs coffee before he opens his eyes, but he is pretty good at making it with his eyes closed!! This is also our first time co-habitating, so we learning a lot of new things about each other. So here we goooo.!!
Thanks for shopping.