Made Egg Roll Stir-Fry tonight for supper and it was delicious as always. We have made this before and always enjoy it. It is pretty simple but you can make it even easier if you use bagged coleslaw mix. I usually chop up the cabbage and carrot, or I should say Hubby does :) The cabbage we used today was pretty big so a little cabbage-heavy but still good. I made the recipe pretty close to as written except I use ground chicken for the meat and omit the ginger. I also make sure to cover the pan when cooking the veggies to make sure they soften enough; may even cook a little longer if needed. Funny, this recipe has been on our meal plan the last two weeks but kept getting skipped. Not because we don't like it but a part of me felt a little guilty for making a meat dish. I know, odd, as I'm not 100% vegan and do eat some meat; but that's how my brain works. A little (or a lot) warped at times. Trying to eat more pant-based and less meat made me feel guilty cooking meat at home. Wanted this dish, so made it tonight and we both enjoyed it :)
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It's a rainy, warm, and humid day here today and I decided to make a pot of Chicken Noodle Soup, because that's how I roll ;) LOL. Had bought a cooked chicken from the grocery store yesterday to make sandwiches so decided to use the leftover chicken in a soup. I used a half bag of frozen Mirepoix vegetables (onion, celery, carrot), my homemade chicken broth (from freezer), egg noodles, the leftover chicken, and seasoning (salt, pepper, savory). So very easy and so very good. I was having a bit of a struggle lately with meal plans, cooking, and just figuring out what I wanted to eat. I made a meal plan for this week; Mon to Thurs, as I normally do. I have a couple of old favorites that we haven't had in awhile and a couple of vegan meals that we really enjoyed. Meals that sound good to me and I'm ones I'm looking forward to making and eating. Not simply meals that I feel like I should eat.
Found I was falling into a rut of trying to plan and eat meals that were vegan and healthy, but they were meals that I didn't really want or wasn't looking forward to. This was just setting myself up for failure, As I said before, I am not vegan but I was trying to eat much more plant-based foods overall. Since eating this way I was feeling better health-wise, but if I end up not cooking and going out to restaurants instead or just having cereal or toast for my meals, than it isn't working as it should. I still plan to eat plant-based meals but it isn't a rule that has to be followed 100% or even 75%. As long as I am trying to eat healthy and am feeling good, I'm happy :) Haven't been having the greatest week for some reason. Not really sure why.
I seem to be finally heading in the right direction health-wise; at least more than before. I have been to my family doctor and since my inflammation markers are still pretty high (and have been for at least a couple of years) she is sending me for further testing and to see an internist. I have already been to the internist appointment and he is doing testing as well. May finally get some answers, and if everything comes back fine then I will deal with that. That may sound like an odd comment; deal with being fine, but I feel with my symptoms there has to be something going on. Maybe it is just me getting older, but at times I feel so bad I can't even imagine how bad I'll feel in 10 years. Maybe 40 is the new 60 for me :) lol. Gotta laugh at it I guess. Keep my sense of humor. I have also went back to a homeopath and caved and had a blood analysis done to see about food intolerances. Not sure if it will help but pretty much willing to try anything. I also have those results back and they were not 100% what I expected. They do give me some information food-wise to try though. Haven't really started with that yet but plan to. This week I have felt out of sorts with cooking and mealtimes though. I find myself really not wanting the vegan meals I have planned for the week. This has really been going on for several weeks now. Think I'm getting sick of rice and bean dishes. I did make pasta and sauce with vegan meatballs on Monday and Bean Soup on Tuesday. We went out spur of the moment on Wed and I made pork chops on Thursday. Chickpea Fried Rice was on the plan for this week, but I found myself really not wanting to have it. I was craving my Pork Chops with Apples & Onions which I haven't had in ages and a baked potato; so that's what I made and it was delicious. Tried another vegan recipe from "Forks Over Knives": Southwestern Mac & Cheese and this one is pretty good as well but and has even more potential I think. So far, the recipes tried from this book have been hits :) First of all I think the recipe was pretty good as is, but I used chickpea pasta which was firmer and grainier so it took from this recipe. I think it would be much better with regular pasta. I also think it would be better to add some diced tomatoes to the mix, so will likely do that next time. I added some diced tomato on top today and it was a nice addition.
There is a vegan Cheese Sauce recipe which was the best, non-cheese, cheese sauce I've made yet, although it's nothing like cheese, so don't go in with that thought in your head. It is tasty though and works well in this recipe. I made it as written except for not using the tahini as I'm not a fan. Tried another new recipe from my "Forks Over Knives" cookbook, this one was picked by Hubby :) Made Mushroom Tacos using the Grilled Portobello Mushroom recipe and they were very good. I scooped out the gills before marinating; personal preference. I substituted molasses (1/2 the amount called for in recipe) for the brown rice syrup and left out the ginger. We made our tacos on small corn tortillas using the marinated grilled mushrooms, salsa, tomato, spinach, and avocado. Very tasty! I also made some rice with black beans and corn. Great meal and 100% plant-based :) Also had a great cooked breakfast this morning. Made a veggie hash with vegan sausage and had half a bagel and eggs. Yummy!
So, we were in the area and decided to try The Stone Jug again, but this time we tried the lunch menu. We were only there last week for supper and thought the entire experience was wonderful. The building is beautiful, service was great, and the food was really good. We couldn't wait to go back :) Had a Murphy's Stout again, on tap! While I enjoyed my beer and we waited for our food we were able to enjoy some live music at the next table. It was great! For lunch I ordered the Grilled Vegetable Sandwich and Hubby ordered the Grilled Chicken. We split a side of potato wedges. The sandwiches were excellent, one of the best veggie sandwiches I've had. Tasty and creamy with the cheese and pesto, and the bread was great and crispy. The wedges are really good as well, funny as last time I wasn't as fond of them. They are good but I was never a fan of wedge fries and I think that was clouding my judgement so I take it back, they are very good :) Even had some dessert and coffee. Tried their dessert special: a blueberry topped cheesecake mousse. This was sinful. OMG! So good. It was so tasty and creamy and the blueberries worked great with it. Also tried their Caramel Macchiato coffee; very nice as well :) We will be going back! Adding this to our summer list of things to do and places to go :)
Myself, Hubby and Mom went to Piatto Friday evening for supper. Didn't realize there was a Basketball game at the same time so downtown was extremely busy as were most restaurants. Even though Piatto was full, the service was still great! We had drinks, no apps, pizzas, coffee and dessert :) Everything was fantastic! Their Piatto beer is very good, it's a nice light beer and definitely reminds me of beers drank in Italy. Hubby had the vegan pizza with added roasted red peppers. Myself and Mom split The Stephanie, because there is no other pizza in my opinion. Had a decaf cappuccino; best coffee downtown, hands down. Would love to see a non-dairy milk option available, hint hint :) Tried the three assorted tarts for dessert. They were all good but the lemon is fantastic. I recommend that one over the others if you are only getting one.
Looking at my blog lately I am seeing a lot of restaurants, but I do cook as well. Just some weeks more than others :) lol. I won't lie, I love an evening out for dinner. Love the atmosphere, maybe having a drink that I wouldn't normally make at home, have a good meal that I don't have to prep/cook or clean up afterwards, and perhaps having a delicious dessert to top it off. Yum, just drooling here thinking about it. May have to go out for supper tonight ;) lol.
This week has been Easter break for me and a few days for Hubby as well so we went out a little more than usual. I did cook a couple of good meals though. I made a new recipe from my Forks Over Knives cookbook: Vegetable White Bean Hash, which was very good. I love hash but usually don't think to add beans. I used pinto beans for this and it all worked well together. I also used spinach instead of kale and onion instead of leek. Will be making again. Also made my Shrimp & Pasta dish. Used tomatoes instead of broccoli this time and added some nutritional yeast. Still one of my favorite dishes. It's been ages since we've been to Adelaide so went Tuesday evening for supper. We were there at 5 when they opened as they are usually really busy and you can't always get a table. It was still busy but I'm guessing a Tuesday is not as busy as a weekend. I was a little sad once I saw the menu as my favorite wasn't listed; Kobe Beef Wraps. These are the best, but they are out of Kobe beef at the moment :(
They still had the El Camino drink though which is fantastic. I had that and Hubbby had a Port Rexton on tap. I ended up ordering all vegan dishes. I had their Chips & Guacamole (a regular for me), the Olives, and the Korean BBQ Tofu. The guac was great as always, the olives were good but came out at the end so was getting a little full and also a lot of olives for two people. Would have preferred to have them at the beginning to pick at during the evening. Finally the tofu, it was a good dish but oh so spicy. It was the hottest dish at the table and I'm not one for spicy. Hubby loves spicy and even he said it was pretty hot. He was surprised I ate most of it; he helped of course :). He ordered three Tuna Tacos and 5 raw Oysters. Went back to Bernard Stanley for another meal this week. The last time we went for brunch and the Eggs Benedict with Pork Belly was fabulous; I had to try it again. It was still good but the pork belly seemed much fattier this time and therefore wasn't as enjoyable as the first time. I know, sounds odd, pork belly is fatty; but they press it so more fat renders out I assume and it was stickier and oh so tasty. This time it was fattier and needed to be stickier or crispier. Hope that makes sense. Hubby had a Trout Salad special (goat cheese on the side) which he thought was excellent but we thought was a little small for $17.
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AuthorMy name is Michelle and I am tired of struggling with my weight. I am stopping the struggle. Archives
September 2020
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