Tag Archives: tofu

Mini Explosions

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I did not have another mimosa last night, but did make a decidedly Northern dessert.

Mmmn.  However, today was NOT feeling as romantic.  It seemed like everything I touched today exploded!  I was cleaning up messes and putting out (metaphorical) fires all over the place.

For starters I was running late for volunteering so I made my breakfast smoothie a bit smaller than usual.

1cup frozen mixed berries + 1cup plain fat free soy milk + 1T fat free sugar free jello powder.

It was super tasty, but I spilled 1/3 of it all over the counter 😦

I managed to clean up the mess and get to the hospital on time though.  And they actually had a lot for me to do at volunteering which was nice.  Not nice, was 30minutes after my shift when I was still there and I started panicking about getting home in time to make my important phone calls.  No worries though, it’s President’s Day, no one was open.  Boo 😦

And I was supposed to submit my college application today but since there was no one to help me override the system I have to wait until tomorrow to imput my Caribbean high school into the online form.  I did some major damage on this bag of chips during the whole 2hours of failure.

At least they were vegan!  Next I tried to recreate last night’s dessert, only to have it explode all over my microwave.

On the plus side, now my microwave is sparkling, and I put it to good use on a late lunch.

Tandoor Chef Vegetarian Pad Thai is seriously my favorite frozen meal of all time and it’s super awesome that it’s vegan too.  If you see it at your grocery store, buy it!

I had hoped to go to the gym today finally but I’m feeling just under the weather enough still that it seemed like a bad idea.  I would kill for a diet soda so maybe I’ll at least get in another walk (I walk to/from volunteering).  Other than that the plan is dinner and bed.  See you then.

Anything explode on you today?  I’m all ears if you want to gripe about it?

A Tropical Getaway

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I may be stuck in Buffalo until spring break but tonight’s meal felt like a tropical getaway!  And what better day to celebrate the sunny Caribbean than a day that’s all about romantic getaways?!

Every single aspect of tonight’s meal was tropical and tasty.  We started with a Uniq fruit as our appetizer.

We have tried Ugli fruits before, but this was our first Unique.  It was a little too bitter/sour for me.  We each ate 2-3slices from the mound and the rest got packed away.

Dinner was much more successful.

Lime Ponzu broccoli with walnuts,

and my Coco Loco Tofu.

Everything together was delicious.

Coco Loco Tofu is my favorite tofu recipe, it is the perfect blend of savory and sweet.  For the side dish I sautéed a big bag of frozen brocoli in clementine olive oil, then added a few walnuts and some Kikoman Lime Ponzu Sauce.

The sauce came from the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program and was the perfect addition to our Caribbean night.

Even our drinks were tropical!  We made hibiscus mimosas.

I’ve carried this hibiscus juice from Brooklyn and I was almost sad to open it.

For the mimosas we used a little extra oj because the champagne (from our wedding!) wasn’t cooled, with a splash of hibiscus juice.

Wonderful!

I’ve got to work on my lab before we head to bed, but I’ll probably be pouring a 2nd mimosa!  Have a great night lovers!

How did you celebrate Valentine’s today?

Better than Bonobo’s

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Today has been another mish-mash day.  I feel like this whole week is going to be crazy until I take my tests next Thursday and Friday.  It doesn’t help that my insomnia is back in full-force: going to bed at 10:30 meant falling asleep past 2am and waking up after 10.   Unfortunately, I actually haven’t even really started studying yet because the whole day has been swamped with errands. 

Thankfully we did have time for a bit of fun during those errands.  Like getting a Valentine’s gift from my parents when we went to the post office.

And enjoying lunch from Wegman’s salad bar.

Veggies = steamed broccoli, squash, and mushroom.

Protein = a tiny bit each tofu, tandori chicken, and general tso’s chicken.

We enjoyed a treat post shopping, Green and Black Milk Chocolate Peanut Bar.

My parents have been raving about this ever since we gave my dad one for Christmas, it has carmelized peanuts and sea salt!  My portion-

My lunch was pretty small, especially since I didn’t have breakfast so I knew I needed a snack as well.  We turned this,

into this.

The world’s best smoothie contained the flesh and water from 1 young coconut, with 6oz of lowfat plain yogurt, half a tray of ice, a drizzle of honey, and a huge shake of cinnamon.

Mmmmn.  Seriously, people who want to try the coconut chai from Bonobo’s, make this!

The rest of the day is going to be some sort of mix of studying, cleaning, dinner and gym.  See ya later.

Coconut, love it or hate it?  I LOVE it!  I can’t think of a single application I don’t adore it in.

Stupid Squared

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It was a fun day, but not a very successful one 😦  Adam’s poor time management actually caused me to miss the gym, for the second day in a row.  I now have 50 – 2 days until my half and I’m freaking out.  But I guess I can’t criticize the hubby about watching the clock as I’ve been a major instigator in the fact that it’s after 1am and we’re still up.  And I still have to shower!

Hanging out this afternoon I snacked on a serving each of these guys –

Cedar’s makes the best Spinach Dip I think I’ve ever had.

Dinner was a “Cooking Light” recipe, Mao Pao Tofu.

The only substitution I planned was subbing turkey for pork.  Unfortunately I’m an idiot and I used double the meat called for but now at least we have extra leftovers.

It was good but not great; the texture was there but the seasoning was off.

Adam brought home his dessert – Brownie Obsession – from dinner last night and it ended up being so tasty that I ate more than half of it, whoops!  We devoured so quickly I didn’t get a picture so I pulled one from the website.

Delish!  Between SNL, Modern Family, and Scrubs we laughed hard it’s a wonder I managed to swallow my food 🙂

What is your favorite tv comedy?  Scrubs is near and dear to my heart (I mentioned it in my wedding vows!!!) but Modern Family has really blown me away.

Jam Flavored Stuffing

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The title is what I imagined when I put these two phrases together:  1.”Running around like a chicken with its head cut off;” 2.”Jam-packed.”  I guess you could pack the chicken with the jam?  Consequently, those phrases also both describe my day today.  It’s been go-go-go!

First, I went to my pt appointment.  Good news, I can run again!!!!  Only a few days a week and I have to start slow, but it’s great news.  I ran a mile during my appointment and it felt glorious!

I had some time between that appointment and my doctor’s appointment so I ended up killing an hour in McDonalds.  I bought some apple dippers to tide me over.

Yums.  And I loved most of the nutrition information on this packaged for kids item.

The only downpoint in my opinion is the zero grams of fiber – the apples had fiber to begin with if they’d just leave the darn skins on!  I guess I shouldn’t have nutrition outrage when I’m guzzling a diet coke at 9am.

I also started a new book – Under the Table, by Katherine Darling.

I’m loving it!  Darling is a good writer and culinary school is my ultimate dream.  I had to wait for more than an hour at the doctor’s office and normally I’d have been seething but today I was just glad to have an excuse to read!

I also got some news from this doctor.  2 out of 4 plantars warts are gone (for good hopefully!).  The other two I’m going to continue with the home-acid for, and I now have a prescription for an oral medicine that boosts your immune system – part of the reason I’m having such a problem is because mine isn’t responding properly.  I’ll take the medicine over break and I’m scheduled to have the wart cut out on January 4th.  This will most likely keep me immobile for a week or so, and could possibly keep me from running for up to a month.  It’s pretty devastating that training (which has barely begun) might break 2 months before my half, but it’s better than running the half with my foot hurting.

After that appointment I went to two separate pharmacies and then drove home for the quickest stop in ever.  I didn’t even take a shower, just washed my face!  However, I got two blocks from my house before I realized the reason I was in the car wasn’t in the car with me!  I left the giant bag of stuff that needed to be dropped off at Goodwill at home!

FYI – we designate a spot in our hall closet for things that can be donated.  Old clothes, free products, gifts that aren’t our style, etc.  Once we’ve got a sufficient pile we drop it off at Goodwill rather than throwing those things in the trash.  It’s better for the enviroment and our society.

When I went home to pick up the bag I realized I was clearly a bit distracted by hunger so I grabbed the can of soursop juice I bought the other day.

YUM!  Handsdown, sour sop is one of my very favorite things.  It is one of my favorite childhood taste memories and I was so excited to see some form of it sold here in Buffalo.

[I told you I didn’t shower!]

After Goodwill I went to Target for some Christmas-ing, and then finally the grocery store.  On my way out I hit up the salad bar.

I filled the small top halfs with yummy things – pesto pasta and mac and cheese.

And the larger bottom half with healthy things – baked tofu and brussels sprouts.

I didn’t say healthy isn’t yummy though, the brussels and tofu ended up being my favorite part!  The tofu was unbelievably chewy, I’m dying to know how they cooked it that way!

I gave myself some time at home to relax while I ate (and typed this post and watched some tv), but now it’s time to get back to jamming the headless chicken – lordy that sounded dirty!

Hopeful list of to-do’s from tonight

  1. put away laundry
  2. clean up the kitchen
  3. Chemistry reading
  4. e-mail regarding class scheduling trauma
  5. dinner?
  6. pt exercises
  7. go back to pharmacy
  8. shower – this one isn’t optional!

How do you say you’re busy?????  I usually go with busy beaver, but I’m also partial to “busy, busy, busy, busy*.”  *Said in the magician voice from Frosty  the Snowman.

*****Update – I managed not to do a single to-do.  I did, however, finish my entire 400+ page book!  And yesterday?  I watched Rose Red; a 4.5hour Steven King mini-series 😉

Tastes of Fall

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Another productive day, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the streak continues!  Plus, I’ve full-force started eating “October food,” another trend I hope to continue 🙂  After my breakfast post I attempted to do a  little work, but Adam and I realized we were way too distracting to each other at home,

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so we packed up our stuff and went to a coffee shop to work!

All my diet soda talk in the last post got me craving one, so that’s what I had!

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The husband got a fancy shmancy hot chocolate.

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We were at The Spot, so you know I wanted a Mike’s Sandwich, but when I thought about all the food fun I had planned at home I decided to resist.  We studied for 4hours and I got a huge chunk of Chemistry work done. 

On the way home I had the husband drop me at the gym.  It was not so fabulous.  My foot still hurts and my calves were really really tight.  I really need to talk to a professional about strength-building/stretching exercises for my calves, knees, and hips.  In the end I did 2.83 miles on the treadmill, and tons of stretching, for 36minutes and 361 calories.

After my shower we closet swapped our summer stuff for winter duds.  Folks, we need to go shopping.  I have almost no winter wardrobe.  In NYC I dressed inappropriately and just dealt with being cold and uncomfortable, but that is not going to fly here in Buffalo (I’ll die!).  We scheduled in a big mall trip for next weekend – p.s. we budgeted for this already.

Then, the foodie fun began!  I made my first pumpkin pie through a straw of the season.

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1/2C 2C “>Stoneyfield Farms Lowfat Vanilla Frozen Yogurt, 1C pumpkin puree, 1T maple syrup, 1/2C skim milk, dash cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.

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So good!

While I was drinking “pie,” I started baking pie!  I made a Maple Spice Pie from one of my favorite cookbooks, Pie, Pie, Pie: Easy Homemade Favorites, by John Phillip Carroll.  I used a Wholly Wholesome Organic Whole Wheat Pie Shell.

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Small blip, apparently you need maple syrup for a maple pie, who knew?!

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After an emergency run to the store things were back on track.  It had to set, so I started dinner before diving into dessert.  This combo came (basically) from the September issue of Health (recipe here).  Tofu and eggplant with cabbage over soba noodles.

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I swapped tamari and worchestire (sp?) for miso and sesame seeds for sesame oil, but other than that I followed the recipe.  It was wonderful, I loved the soba noodles and the texture of the tofu was great.

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I had more pumpkin alongside dinner, Wolaver’s Organic Will Steven’s Pumpkin Ale.

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And then finally it was time for dessert!

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The pie was good, but super messy.  The inside tasted like caramel apples to me!

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I took a huge slice and actually made myself a bit sick  😦  Now it is time for bed, I’ve got to get my sleep if I want another productive day!

What fall foods have you enjoyed this year?

Random and Randomer

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My title makes me think of “curious and curiouser” a line from Alice in Wonderland(one of my top 5 favorite books!).  I am so excited for that movie to come out, I can’t wait to see Tim Burton’s spin on it.  In general I’ve been super annoyed by all of the children’s books turned live-action movies (The Grinch, Cat in the Hat, etc; blech) but I have high hopes for this one.  I am also excited for “Couples’ Retreat,” which comes out this weekend.  I have a trip to the movies planned to celebrate my first Chem exam.

If breakfast/lunch were random, dinner was randomer.  For full disclosure’s sake, I would like to mention that I’ve eaten 3-5 fruit gel candies without photographing today.  Equally junky was the snack I bought for class; I usually don’t eat during class but I was super hungry when I got to campus –

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I never buy Snyder’s pretzels because I have zero self-control with those delicious nuggets but this vending machine find had a slightly more reasonable 2servings per bag.

After class Caroline asked if I wanted to grab dinner and do some review.  After wasting time all day it was the perfect opportunity to make up!  Plus, we got Wegman’s salad bar which you know I love.

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Steamed broccoli,

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roasted brussels sprouts (nowhere near as good as the ones I make at home, *mental note to make them soon*),

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and curried tofu.

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All pretty yummy.  I love that the curried tofu had raisins in it!

We got a lot done and I got home around 10.  It ended up being a semi-sucessful day.  My foot has been really hurting and favoring my other side has caused my right hip to hurt but I am hoping to make it to the gym for a run tomorrow.  I have a doctor’s appointment this Friday which we put me out of commission for at least a few days so I don’t want to fall too far behind.  I’m going to do some blog reading and then I need to hit the sack to rest up for tomorrow, night!

Do you like raisins in things?  I love them, I put raisins in salad, cookies, where ever I can fit them.

Dinner Was Roasted and Orange

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Not exactly my proudest day, you can go ahead and just call me Super Sloth!  I felt like crap so I took a solid 2hour nap.  Plus I’ve been so. frickin. hungry. all. day.  I feel like all I did is eat and sleep but there was literally no reprieve from the hunger!  After the many meals I posted earlier I ate this before dinner.

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Healthy.  But I’d been wanting chips all day so I finally walked to the gas station and went with it.  And that was before dinner mind you!

Dinner was actually pretty good.  It started yesterday when I marinated 2blocks of tofu overnight.  Usually we make 1block at a time but then there is never leftovers for more than one person.  Since I have class tomorrow I decided to try a double batch.

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Asian Orange Tofu Bake, serves 6

  • 2blocks extra firm tofu, drained and lightly pressed
  • 2C orange juice
  • 4T cornstarch
  • 1T soy sauce
  • 4T rice vinegar
  • 2T chipotle oil (or any spicy oil; you could also use evoo and just add red pepper flakes)
  • 1T honey
  1. Slice each block of tofu into 7 pieces and set aside.
  2. In a large tupperware, stir together oj and cornstarch to mix.
  3. Add the rest of the marinade ingredients and stir to combine.
  4. Place the tofu slices in the marinade, making sure each piece is fully covered.  Cover and let sit for 2hours or overnight.
  5. Remove slices from marinade and place in a single layer on a foiled and sprayed baking sheet.
  6. Bake for 25minutes at 450*.
  7. ***Tip – we reserved our leftover marinade to cook with broccoli later this week.

I also roasted up some butternut squash with salt, pepper, and a bit of nutmeg.  I was so excited to see this convenient package at Wegmans.

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Finally, I used a sample from Annie Chun’s on the side.

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These rice bowls have two servings each and are quick, healthy, and tasty.

Dinner was very starchy and orange upon second glance, but rather good.

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I’m not gonna lie though, I’m still hungry.  The husband just said I was a fatty!!  I will most likely have a snack, even though I know that it’s probably unnecessary.  I am also still pretty sleepy, so in spite of the nappage, I will probably go to bed early tonight.  We’re wild and crazy around here 🙂

Tomorrow I must go to the gym, work on Chemistry, and go to class (duh).  What are your big goals for Hump Day?

*****Updated – You know ate more crap!  I used a Wholly Wholesome sample to bake cookies!

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