Update | Friday Thoughts

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With graduation rounding the corner quicker than I had realized it would be, I'm finding myself experiencing some anticipated, but still not welcome, anxiety. I am extremely excited to start working in the field I've been passionate about and studying and preparing for for the past four years, but it's a bit scary. I've been trying my best to focus on the present and just deal with things as they come, but I still find myself constantly thinking about the future and what I'm going to be doing after graduation.

In an attempt to calm myself down, I've been trying to schedule some "me time" whenever I possibly can within my schedule of going to class, my internship, working at the coffee shop, and babysitting. Today is one of those me-days. I have an unexpected day off! I was supposed to babysit from 6:30am-2pm, but I was told I actually wasn't needed for the day, and since the schedule was already made for the coffee shop & I requested off for babysitting, I wasn't scheduled to work there either.

I started the day kind of sluggish, but in a good way. I set my alarm for 8am (even on a day off, I feel like I'm wasting the day if I sleep past 8. I know... I'm working on being less crazy about this). I guess by body is getting used to my routine of waking up earlier than that most days, because I naturally woke up around 7:30. I tossed and turned for a while, trying to snag a few extra minutes of sleep, but my body was already awake and it was not going back to sleep for anything.

So I laid in bed for a while, talked to Chris, checked twitter and instagram, and snuggled with Benji - the normal situation before I got out of bed, ate a banana, got all ready for the gym, and then whined and complained to Benji (yes, my cat) about not wanting to walk outside because it was 12 DEGREES OUT. Eventually I made myself feel as guilty as possible about not going, and dragged my butt over to the gym and had a mostly cardio-focused work out.

I came home, showered, and ate this delicious breakfast:

...which was VERY easy to make:

1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/4 chopped avocado
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp (or more) of your favorite hot sauce
a pinch each of salt, pepper, onion powder, and paprika
1 tbsp chia seeds

Cook the zucchini over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until they start to brown. Scramble in the eggs. I usually whisky the hot sauce directly into my eggs, but you can add it separately if you want. Add in the spices and cook your eggs to your desired done-ness. I usually cook them VERY dry. Add the zucchini and eggs to a bowl, stir in the chopped avocado and chia seeds, and enjoy!

I would have liked to add some chopped tomato and some onion instead of the onion powder to this as well, but I don't have any on hand at the moment. Today is a day for doing anything and everything that calms me, so grocery shopping might be on the list for later today. Yes, grocery shopping is definitely something I consider me-time. I love it. I'm also a big fan of cleaning, which is another thing I will be tackling today. And lastly, reading. It may be reading for my abnormal psychology class, but the book we're required to write a paper on for Tuesday is actually extremely interesting, so it doesn't seem like a chore. Maybe I'll do a review on it for the blog... who knows.

If you've made it to the end of this unnecessarily long blog post, thank you for reading. Sometimes you just need to let your thoughts out, and this blog is one of my outlets for that. I hope you're all enjoying your Friday!

xo Sam

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Recipe | Spicy Roasted Eggplant and Chickpea Burgers

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1 small eggplant
1 15 oz. can of garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
a couple tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 scallions, roughly chopped
1/4 cup chili lime spiced cashews
1/2 cup quick-cooking or instant oats
2 tbsp chia seeds
1/4 cup vegetable stock
2 tbsp sriracha hot sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tbsp onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

To start off these burgers, you're gonna want to roast your eggplant. I used a small one, but whatever size looks good at the grocery store will work fine. A larger eggplant will yield you an extra burger or two and you might need to add a little more of the spices.

Anyway, preheat your oven to 450° Fahrenheit, line your baking sheet with aluminum foil, and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Slice your eggplant in about 1/2 inch slices and line them on the baking sheet. Drizzle the slices with olive oil and sprinkle some salt and pepper on them. Roast them for about 5-7 minutes on one side, flip them, and then roast the other side for about 3-5 minutes.

While your eggplant is roasting, you can start processing your other ingredients. I have a really small food processor, so I needed to process everything in steps - that's how I'll write out this recipe. If you have a large food processor, go ahead and just dump all the ingredients into it and pulse away.

Anyone with a small food processor, here's what you can do:

Start off with the cashews - you want to get them to a crumbly consistency, but not like bread crumbs. Pulse them for 10-15 seconds to achieve this texture and then add them to a big bowl.

Next, you might have to do your can of beans in two steps. Just pulse it until the beans are mashed up a little bit. I like a chunkier burger, so I didn't process my beans for a long time. It's up to your personal preference though. Add your mashed up chickpeas to the bowl with the ground up cashews.

Take your roughly chopped scallions, oats, chia seeds, cumin, coriander, turmeric, onion powder, salt, and pepper to the food processor and pulse for 10-15 seconds, or until everything looks evenly combined. Add this mixture to the bowl. 

You can add the sriracha, or whatever hot sauce you chose, 1 tbsp of olive oil, and vegetable stock right to the bowl and bypass the food processor. Stir up all the ingredients to combine and evenly distribute all the spices.

At this point, your eggplant should be finished roasting  Remove the eggplant from the oven and turn the temperature down to 400°.

Go ahead and roughly chop up the eggplant - CAREFULLY since you just took it out of the oven and it will be hot! (feel free to let it cool off for a little while) - and then add it to the food processor. Pulse for 15-20 seconds, or until it's at your desired consistency. Add the eggplant to the bowl with all the other ingredients and give it one last stir and a taste to check for seasoning.

Grab a handful of the mix and start forming your patties. I was able to get 7 burgers when I made this. I just put the patties on the same baking sheet and foil I used to roast my eggplant - I just added a little more non-stick spray. Line your patties up and bake them for 7 minutes one one side, flip them, and bake for another 5-7 minutes on the other side. 

While your patties are cooking, you can get your burger toppings ready. I just served mine on some toasted organic whole grain bread with mixed baby greens and tomato slices topped with honey mustard.

Enjoy!

- Sam :)

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Recipe | Spicy Lettuce Wraps with Seitan and Sauteed Peppers

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Okay, so they're not really wraps because they're small... but I didn't know what else to call them. They're delicious, though, and that's all that matters.

Makes 12-15 lettuce wraps

A couple tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 12oz package of Seitan strips
1 bell pepper, sliced
1 tomato, diced
1 head of any sturdy lettuce. I used bib lettuce, but romaine would work fine too. Just pull off the leaves, wash them, and pat them dry. Keep in mind that iceberg lettuce has basically no nutritional value, so try and stay away from that if at all possible
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 tbsp Chile Lime hot sauce (I used Cholula brand)
Salt and pepper to taste

Feel free to add more or less of the hot sauce. I enjoy spicy foods, so I was pretty generous with it.

Set a large skillet coated with olive oil to medium heat. Start browning off your seitan to get it nice and crispy. This should take around 7-8 minutes. Keep the seitan moving in the pan so it doesn't burn. Once the seitan is crispy, go ahead and add the pepper slices. Sweat them for about 5 minutes and then add the cumin, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and cook for another 3-5 minutes.

Spoon the seitan and peppers into your little lettuce cups and top with your chopped tomatoes. I topped mine with some honey mustard as well to balance out the spice.

Enjoy! :)

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Update + Recipe | An Apology and a Quick Recipe

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I haven't blogged in quite some time, and it's mainly because I've been prepping to move out of my old apartment and into a new one for the past couple weeks. I haven't had any new recipes because I haven't been grocery shopping to make any remarkable dishes for you guys since I'd end up having to lug all my new groceries to my new apartment (it was bad enough transporting the little groceries I DID have in the scorching heat).

So, just a little recap on my life: I am finally all moved into my new apartment. I'm living alone now because my roommate Rachel graduated and to be honest I just can't tolerate living with anyone other than her, so this is the best option for me, lol.

Last Monday was Memorial Day and I got to go home and spend it with my family, and Chris came over which was nice. My sister visited from Virginia with the baaabbbbbyyyyyyy which was awesome since I hadn't seen her or Liam since Easter weekend. I made quiiiiiite a large spread for just my mom, my sister, my aunt, my sister's friend Dana, Chris, and I but I was too frazzled to photograph anything. I was cooking a bunch of things at the same time and I didn't have the time nor energy to capture all the steps and outcomes. I did write down the recipe to the vegan black bean and avocado burgers that I made, but again, I didn't take any pictures of the finished product. But I'll still probably make a post about the recipe soon.

I did, however, make the chickpea and avocado dip, which went over quite well with everyone who tried it! So that was nice :)

Now I'm back down by school for the majority of the summer. I babysit down here and I soon will be starting to work with a professor as a reading and grading assistant on campus, AND on Monday I have an interview at a coffee shop about 25 minutes away, so I'm hoping that goes over well. I might be biting off more than I can chew, but we'll see how everything goes :)

Tonight I had a simple dinner but it was delicious enough to be blog worthy :) It's not really a recipe... it's more like an idea: Vegan BLT

So for this I just took 4 slices of smokey tempeh, sauteed it over medium heat in some extra virgin olive oil in a skillet to get it crispy on both sides (about 5 minutes on each side). Then I added those crispy slices to a club roll from my supermarket's bakery with some slices of fresh tomato and some red leaf lettuce. The whole thing was gone in about 5 minutes. That's how good it was.

If I had more options in the fridge I probably would have added some sprouts or used kale or spinach instead of the lettuce. I was also gonna add some avocado but mine just wasn't ripe enough to slice.

Enjoy! :)

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Recipe | Another Simple and Delicious Warm Barley Salad

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Makes 4-6 servings, depending on if you're eating it as your main meal or as a side dish

2 cups cooked barley
a couple tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
2 small zucchini, cut in fourths, lengthwise, and then chopped
1 tomato, chopped
6 slices of Smart Deli baked ham, chopped
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

I had my barley already cooked from when I made a huge batch earlier in the week. I suggest cooking your barley ahead of time, because the other steps of this recipe don't take much time to cook so you might end up over cooking your veggies while you wait for your barley to finish cooking. Do whatever you feel most comfortable with because this "salad" can be eaten piping hot, room temperature, and even cold.

Set a large skillet to medium heat and add some extra virgin olive oil. Sweat the onions and peppers for about 5-7 minutes.

Add some salt and pepper and then throw in your zucchini. Cook everything for another 5-ish minutes. I didn't want the zucchini to get too mushy, so I cut the cooking time a little short for it so it was still a bit crunchy. If you want the zucchini softer, cook it closer to 7-8 minutes.

Add some more salt and pepper to the pan along with the red pepper flakes and then add your "ham" slices. Separate the pieces a little bit with your hands as you're adding them to the pan. You don't need to cook this as it's already fully cooked. So just stir everything to warm the "ham" through.

Combine your veggies and protein with your 2 cups of barley and then throw in your chopped up tomato and toss everything with a few more tbsp of olive oil. Adjust the seasoning if necessary. You can enjoy this as just a side dish or as your entire meal.

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Health Tip | Meat Substitutions

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It's so easy to be a vegetarian nowadays with the HEAPS of options you have to swap out the meat components with in your favorite dishes.

I consider myself blessed to have been raised by a mother who sleeps, breathes, and (literally) eats organically. She preaches the importance of non-GMO products. Preservatives, carageneen, and pesticide-covered produce immediately spoil when she's around. And don't get me started about her meat industry rants.

She practices what she preaches and these habits have rubbed off on me. I've been a vegetarian for almost two years now and health-wise it was the best decision I've ever made. I live on my own down at school so I try my hardest to live by what my mom taught me when I'm out buying my own groceries and I think I do a pretty good job.

Here's a list of meat substitutes that are either all organic or use non GMO soy. You can start incorporating these into your diets if you're trying to make the transformation to a completely vegetarian lifestyle. All the products listed I've tried and loved. I'm sure there's a bunch more out there which are perfectly delicious that I just haven't tried out yet. GO EXPLORING!

I'll also post the links to the companies' websites (wherever I can) so you can find out if their products are sold in your favorite supermarket.

Disclaimer: not all of these options are VEGAN friendly.

Gardein

Gardein is probably my favorite brand of meatless cuisine. They have SO MANY options to choose from. These are just photos of the ones I or my roommate currently have on hand. Here's a list of all of Gardein's products I've tried:

The Ultimate Beefless Burger
Crispy Chick'n Patty
Lightly Breaded Turk'y Cutlet
Zesty Marinara Crispy Chick'n Filets
Mandarin Orange Crispy Chick'n
Chipotle Lime Crispy Fingers
Seven Grain Crispy Tenders
BBQ Pulled Shreds

Some of these come with little sauce packets, but I usually just toss them and make my own creations (as you can tell with my recipes). The mandarin sauce is really good though if you want a quick meal and don't have the time to make your own elaborate asian-inspired sauce.

Seitan and Tempeh

I don't really have a specific brand that I like to buy when I'm buying seitan or tempeh. For tempeh, it's easy for me to find an organic option in Wegman's or ShopRite or Trader Joe's or wherever I'm buying my groceries. It's not that easy when it comes to seitan... It's a wheat protein and not a soy protein so I cheat a little bit and buy it anyway because Westsoy is the only brand I've seen... but if you can get your hands on an organic brand then absolutely opt for that one.

Lightlife

Lightlife products are relatively new to me, but so far I'm enjoying them quite a bit. They're made with non-GMO soy and they're quite delicious. I was REALLY surprised by their deli options. They're like cold-cuts but totally meat free and tasty. Their Smart Sausages are VERY similar to the Trader Joe's soy sausages that are near and dear to my heart. Definitely an A+ in my book!

Quorn

I'm not sure if it's true for ALL of Quorn's products, but I do know that on the back of the packaging of the ones I've bought in the past, it's stated that the company doesn't use any genetically modified ingredients. Now, the protein that this company used isn't soy or wheat or even vegetable protein. It's called a "mycoprotein" which is similar to that of a fungus, but doesn't taste weird or anything; I happen to really like their products. Here's a list of all the one's I've tried:

Chik'n Patties
Garlic and Herb Chik'n Cutlets
Gruyere Cheese Cutlet
Chik'n Tenders

Trader Joe's


Okay, Trader Joe's is by no means a completely vegetarian grocery store, but they DO have some great meat-free options. ALSO!!!! Their private label guarantees these awesome things:

√ NO artificial flavors or preservatives
√ NO synthetic colors
√ NO MSG
√ NO genetically modified ingredients
√ NO partially hydrogenated oils (artificial trans-fats)
√ NO "marketing" costs

They also offer a BUNCH of organic options. Here's a list of some of my favorite Trader Joe's vegetarian products:

Italian Sausage-less Sausages
Soy Chorizo
Vegetable Masala Burgers
Chicken-less Mandarin Orange Morsels
Organic 3-Grain Tempeh
Organic Vegetarian Baked Beans (I know this isn't really like a meat substitute but I LOVE THESE BEANS)

Veggie Patch

I've only tried their Falafel Chickpea Balls, but oh my GOD are they good. I'm definitely going to go out and try some of their other products. Although they're not organic, all of their products are completely GMO-free.

Dr. Praegers

I currently don't have any of these products on hand so I don't have any pictures, but my favorite product from this company is the Bombay Veggie Burger. They're GMO-free and just really delicious.

Boca

You need to be careful with this company, because some of their products contain GMO soy. However, they DO have some products which state that there are no genetically modified ingredients used, so just read the labels before you buy it.

Well that's all I can think of right now. There are obviously TONS of companies out there that make fantastic vegetarian meals and things of that sort, but this is just a list of specific MEAT substitutes that you can incorporate into your own meals. I hope this helps any budding vegetarians. Just be smart when you're shopping for groceries - do your research and read the labels. 

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Recipe | Vegan Veggie Melt with Crispy Tempeh

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This recipe will yield one sandwich for a super hungry person who hasn't eaten in about 8 hours :)

about 1/3 of a baguette - you can use whatever bread you like, this is just what I had on hand. If the baguette is HUGE then just use 1/4 or whatever looks like a decent size for a sandwich for you.
4 oz tempeh (1/2 of an 8 oz. package is usually 1 serving) cut into slices
A couple tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 bell pepper, sliced
1/4 onion, sliced
1 tomato, sliced
1/2 avocado, mashed
2 oz soy mozzarella, sliced
1 tbsp or so of your favorite hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

I used a toaster oven to melt the cheese, but you can go ahead and use a regular oven. Set it to 450°F before you start cooking.

Set a skillet to medium heat with some extra virgin olive oil. Begin browning off the slices of tempeh on both sides - about 3-5 minutes on each side.

When they're done browning, take them out of the pan and begin sweating the onions and peppers. Add some salt and pepper and cook them down for about 5-7 minutes.

While the peppers and onions are cooking, you can get started on preparing the bread part  of your sandwich. You're gonna want to cut the loaf in half, but don't bring the knife all the way through to the other side. You want one side still intact so your filling doesn't fall all over the place when you're eating it later. Then just gut out the bread-y part so you can fit alllllllll the fillings inside. My bread was a little stale so I just popped it in the toaster oven after I did this to toast it up a bit. If your bread is fresh, this toasting step isn't necessary unless you want it extra crispy.

When your peppers and onions are done cooking, you can start assembling your sandwich. Try not to drool all over it while you're doing this though. Especially if you have guests... I found this part especially difficult to avoid.

You don't have to assemble yours like I did. I'LL NEVER KNOW. I just found this way was best to keep everything all nice and glued together once the sandwich is finished.

Start off with the peppers and onions on one side of the sandwich and the mashed avocado on the other side.

Then, go ahead and add the strips of tempeh to the peppers and onions side, and the slices of tomato to the avocado side.

Top off the tempeh, peppers, and onions with your soy mozzarella.

Sprinkle the whole thing with some salt and pepper. Toast it up in the toaster oven, or an actual oven, for like 5-10 minutes... however long it takes for the cheese to start melting and the bread to crisp up. Top it off with your favorite hot sauce and enjoy!

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Recipe | Pan-Roasted Spiced Chickpeas

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1 can of Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)
a couple tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tbsp cumin
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp smoked paprika
salt and pepper to taste

Set a large skillet to medium heat. Drain, rinse and DRY the chickpeas. DRY THEM REALLY WELL OR THEY WON'T GET AS CRUNCHY. Add them to the hot pan with some oil and coat them well with it. Add the spices to the pan and stir to combine.

Cook everything together for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Make sure every time you stir them, they end up back in a single layer so that every chickpea is touching the hot pan to get crispy. You might need to add a little more oil throughout the cooking process to avoid sticking. I only had to do this twice and ended up using about 2 tbsp all together. They should achieve color that looks like this after 20 minutes:

Feel free to make them darker if you like, this is just how I preferred them. You can put them over salads, mixed in with rice or pasta dishes at the last minute for that extra crunch, or you could just eat them plain. Enjoy!

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