How fortunate are we to live in a place where this bounty is accessible year round at a store? I think about it all the time but don’t say it nearly enough.
I’m grateful for access to affordable fresh foods. People the world over would give anything for easy access to fresh, delicious fruits and vegetables. Here we have it as close as our local grocer or farmer’s market.
What small thing are you grateful for that you don’t say nearly enough?
There’s nothing better than a dish of ice cream on a hot summer day. Since embracing plant based eating, I’m constantly on the prowl for ways to transform unhealthy comfort foods into something plant based.
Turns out, chocolate ice cream is the simplest thing to figure out.
I looked at several recipes but it seemed like one would be too dry, another would taste more like bananas than chocolate – so I doctored up one into something that suited my tastes.
Homemade Chocolate Nice Cream
2 cups of frozen sliced bananas
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until creamy. If this seems too dry for your blender, just add a little more almond milk to get things going.
Once it’s well blended, pour your mixture into a parchment paper lined container to store in the freezer. It’s that easy. At this point you may wish to add some chunks of vegan chocolate or nuts.
A couple of things to note. You can freeze this to enjoy later or can enjoy as soft serve right now! Add a little more almond milk for milkshakes!!
Also, I allowed mine to freeze overnight and it was hard to scoop. Next time, I will freeze in single serve containers. That way I can set it out to soften just a bit before eating.
Earlier this year I figured out a way to shop for groceries every two weeks and to save money in the process. The goal was to have nutritious meals and snacks but to be more strategic about it during a No Spend Month. I’ve held onto much of what I learned because it simply works well for me.
First of all, you quickly learn which produce items last the longest. For example, apples and oranges have a longer shelf life than grapes or berries. So you use the grapes and berries during week one and save the rest for later.
Salads are best enjoyed for the first week while frozen veggies are a nice change for week two. Although, if I’m in the mood for salad, I’ve been known to cheat and stop at the store to grab a few things!
At some point I realized that all my bananas were going into smoothies so I could buy ripe bananas, dice ’em up, and freeze them to be ready when needed.
In fact, many things freeze well. I buy mushrooms for stir fry and flash freeze the extras for later. Lots of foods can be frozen for cooking and other things keep well when properly stored in the fridge far longer than most people think.
I prefer fresh foods but usually keep some plain frozen steak fries and lots of frozen veggies. I rarely buy the cook in the bag kind because they’re more costly and I never need an entire bag of frozen peas at one time. Buy a regular bag of cheap frozen peas and you can cook them as needed.
Plain and simple, you find ways to be less wasteful and to meal plan better. I made the above pictured pasta primavera using a combination of stuff from the fridge and fresh veggies that I had flash frozen last weekend. The sauce was something from a jar that I had leftover from another dish. The pasta was the end of a package I had opened a couple of weeks ago.
This ability to plan, salvage and preserve has come in handy these last few weeks. Very little is getting wasted right now. I even discovered that leaf lettuce can be frozen for smoothies!
Another thing – when I come home from the store I jot down a list of things that need to be used first and hang it on the fridge. Things tend to get shuffled around and forgotten to languish in the back.
Given how much food is wasted in this country, I would hope that people are using this uncertain time to be more careful and thoughtful about food. That’s probably a pipe dream but this seems like the perfect time to embrace the old adage- use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.
I’m not advocating that anyone do without but I would like to think we could embrace using and making do.
What about you? Are you being more careful with resources? Have your attitudes about shopping and using what you have changed lately? Let’s talk!
Since realizing how easy it is to make homemade granola, there is always some kind of tasty granola on hand in my house. Most of my concoctions use just a handful of ingredients that the typical home cook has on hand and they always come together quickly.
This weekend I found a recipe that I didn’t care for because it used a lot of oil and a ton of brown sugar but it did contain just the right combination of spices. So I stole the spice idea and improvised the rest. When I make it again, I’m going to reduce the brown sugar more. The original recipe called for five tablespoons and I opted for three but that’s still more than I want to consume.
Nonetheless, friends, it’s delicious. Want the recipe? Look no further!
Cinnamon Spice Granola
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
3 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 agave nectar ( or honey if that’s what you have)
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup walnut pieces
Golden raisins (optional)
Mix together the first four ingredients. Then add the maple syrup and agave and mix well. Add the walnuts and oats, stirring well to coat.
Spread out in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for ten minutes and remove from oven to stir. Bake another ten minutes and remove from oven. I added some golden raisins at the end and gave it another good stir.
And yes, it is as easy as it sounds.
It takes about five minutes to prepare and twenty to bake. I leave mine on the pan for a while to let it cool and become crispy.
In addition to having delicious granola to eat, your house will smell divine.
It’s hard to believe but it’s been about six months since a vegan friend encouraged me to try his way of eating for thirty days
This plant based journey has taught me a lot but one of the most valuable lessons is that it’s important to make the right choices for yourself in the kitchen.
Many vegan cooks manipulate ingredients in attempts to recreate familiar dishes in new, plant based and healthier ways. For example, there are scores of recipes on the internet to help you create a “cheese” sauce, ideal for nachos, mac and cheese and scores of comfort food dishes that you may remember from your past life consuming dairy.
I’ve tried a few of these imaginative recipes. Many use cashews and nutritional yeast. Some add a host of seasonings or use roasted red peppers. Nearly all create a neon orange sauce that resembles melted Velveeta. Well, resembles it in appearance at least.
In taste, perhaps not so much.
I have finally learned to cut the recipes in half so that I don’t feel as bad throwing away nearly all the completed product. After the last batch, I stood in the kitchen for a long time, contemplating whether to throw it away right then or stash the concoction in the fridge with hopes I would think of some way to salvage the two cups of mediocrity.
In other words, should I throw it away now or wait till later? This is the inner dialogue sometimes.
I’ve met plenty of people who think these recipes are great. Lots of bloggers, online reviewers and even some real life friends rave about how tasty, how authentically cheesy their favorite recipe is.
I’m happy for them but it’s not for me.
From now on, if I want mac and cheese, I’ll go to a restaurant and enjoy the real thing. It can be a treat, something to be savored and enjoyed occasionally.
For me, plant based eating should be about eating clean and eating well. There’s little more delicious than sautéed mushrooms, onions, peppers and zucchini heaped on top of a baked potato. No sauces, just some pepper and sea salt to taste. In-season blueberries are so delicious they’re hard to resist and homemade soup packed with veggies makes for a tasty dinner.
All of these things can be enjoyed in the simplest form possible. Torturing ingredients into forms they weren’t mean to take on isn’t necessary or worthwhile when you have such tasty meals and snacks at your disposal.
I’ll save my cashews for snacks and occasionally treat myself to the authentic cheesy dish.
After all, food is meant to nourish the body but I think it’s also meant to enjoy. It’s ok to take a break, especially if you’re doing it infrequently. At least, that’s the right choice for me.
We’re 21 days into No Spend January and I have to say it’s been so easy that the prospects of ending it are not especially attractive. I’m thinking about continuing it for another month with a couple of small exceptions to the rules.
Weekends and most evenings have called for quiet times at home. I’ve had time to read, watch movies and catch up on chores around the house. It’s like a staycation every weekend.
Purging and organization projects have revealed some disturbing patterns. For example, just how many half used bottles of bathroom cleaner and conditioner does a gal need? I even discovered that I have two copies of Outlander Season three on dvd that I don’t remember buying.
Either of them.
The month began with a list of areas to purge like my sock drawer, kitchen cabinets and movie collection. About two-thirds of the list is complete. I also have a list of things to do instead of shopping or spending money but I haven’t referred to it even once. It’s going to sound weird but it’s sort of fun to just spend some time inventorying and appreciating what you have.
Cooking has been more fun this month and there’s been a fair amount of experimentation in the kitchen. I’ve been trying to figure out how to make vegan baked goods that resemble their non-vegan counterparts. Removing eggs and butter from the equation is harder than it sounds. While there is a vegan butter on the market, I refused to remove one processed food from my diet only to add in another.
Even with cooking more and experimenting a lot, I’m eating extremely well for less money than normal. Plus there’s been a lot less kitchen waste which is extremely pleasing.
I ran into Wal-Mart for cat food and also to TJ Maxx in search of a gift last week. I wasn’t tempted to buy a single thing and didn’t even buy the gift because everything just looked like cheap, unnecessary crap. A month ago I would have been all over the clearance section and would have walked out with a bag of stuff I didn’t need.
That, my friends, is a huge accomplishment.
For all this progress, there’s still much to do. First, I need to figure out this vegan baked good thing. And, at odds with this goal, is my desire to exercise more consistently. I’m still working toward that goal to run a mile. Perhaps another four weeks will get me there.
Are you interested in trying a No Spend Month? It doesn’t have to be as hard or as austere as it sounds. You set your own rules and have the ability to make a No Spend Month what you want it to be.
My rules are as follows:
There were a couple of exceptions to the rules this month. Dinner and a movie with a friend (it was a delayed Christmas celebration), a retirement gift for a friend at work and retirement cards for some others were planned. I ate out a few times but, aside from that dinner with a friend, it was always because I had to while traveling for work. So far, I’ve stayed in budget and that’s ok.
If I continue this into February, there’s a comedian I want to go see and my mother’s birthday is in February. Other than that, there aren’t many reasons to spend money.
You can make up your own rules and make the exercise what you want it to be.
So who’s in? Anyone else want to try a no spend month? February is the shortest month of the year so it’s a great time to try!