I Went There-Pasta Edition

I haven't done this in about seven years:

Plain spaghetti,plain bottled sauce and white hamburger bun garlic bread-no veggies,no fiber,no protein! A nutritional nightmare for sure-but completely necessary today! After a little too much wine last night(oops!),I wanted carbtastical meals all day today! So I did. That is how you know when you are getting old-3 glasses of wine put you under for a full 24 hours and you are truly and deeply ashamed that you didn't eat any veggies at dinner!

In unrelated news I just watched a stand up comedian on Comedy Central On Demand-Iliza Shlesinger-so funny! I am actually a huge comedy fan-not smart comedy either-dumb,raunchy and stupid is what I like. It is a guilty pleasure of mine-kinda like my pasta dinner-some days are like that!

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"On The Go" Drinks

"On the go" drinks seem to be getting very popular these days. They are a good idea-less paper cups and plastic bottles for one thing! Let's take a look at two different ones I tried this week:

Starbucks Vias are little packets of instant coffee that you just add water to. I was SUPER excited about these because everyone knows I am a coffee freak :). I know instant coffee gets a bad rap-I mean that stuff hasn't had any new advances since Folger's Crystals in the seventies right? I figured that Starbucks would pull through and make some amazing product that actually tastes like the real thing. Unfortunately I was wrong! I tried the Italian Roast flavor and it was a muddy murky and bitter mess. Super sad too-I really thought I was going to be able to get my Starbucks fix any time I pleased. Boo. Well it might be okay if you are camping and need to get caffeinated quickly-but I think you would be better bringing tea bags and going that route. It didn't dissolve all the way either-there were little coffee dust specks all over my mug.

Next up-Crystal Light Pure Fitness Water-grape flavor.

Usually during my workout I would drink a liter of plain water and a liter of Powerade Zero. I LOVE the Powerade but it was getting a little expensive having one everyday! Plus I needed some type of fitness drink-I usually work out at least 90 minutes so I feel like it gives me some boost. Well I have just finished my first box of this-10 in all-and I really love it. I tastes wonderful-is somewhat more naturally sweetened-and it is much cheaper to buy a box of this for about $2 than a $1 Powerade everyday. It dissolved completely and wasn't sticky or sugary tasting at all. I recommend it-it is exactly what it claims to be. I plan on trying more flavors!

All in all,I think "on the go" drinks are a great idea-environmentally they make sense,you don't have to lug cases of anything in the house when you get home from the store(one of my little pet peeves) and it is much cheaper. A lot of times you are paying for plain water with some other stuff added. Make it yourself and save some money!

Me Being Yucky

Prepare yourselves for a gross picture of me post-workout! I like how I hardly post pictures of myself on here yet I feel the need to share this atrocity haha:

I figured if everyone else was doing it then it was only fair I did too. And no I generally don't wear makeup to work out but I had been out and about-usually I look MUCH more disgusting if that is at all possible!

After my hour of circuit training I was too warm for my usual oatmeal breakfast so I prepared this delicious concoction:

• silk plain yogurt


• strawberries microwaved with some jam


• kashi heart to heart cereal

So good! I was so happy to find a big tub of that yogurt-only $3.79! That is one thing I have missed since going vegan-and it gives me a nice protein boost! And yes I always eat out of those Pyrex measuring cups-it is nothing to be ashamed of!

Nuts 'N Berries Dessert Tea

In an unplanned yet beautiful string of events I ended up with this concoction which tasted just like a nuts and berries drink. The drink usually has Frangelico hazelnut liqueur,Chambord raspberry liqueur and cream in it-delicious yet alcoholic and definitely not vegan. What happened is I brewed up some of this:

and I just so happened to find some of this on sale at Peter's Cornucopia(hazelnut flavor):

With a packet of Sugar In The Raw it was heaven in a mug! I highly suggest this combo. I actually bought the Celestial Tea Fruit Sampler which also contains Country Peach flavor-I see peach cobbler tea in my near future! You should try it-not to mention it tamed my sweet tooth for about 40 calories. If you can think of any other combos make 'em known!

What To Do With TVP Nuggets

TVP,when prepared just right can be really delicious! The granules are easy-tacos,sloppy joes,meaty pasta sauce-basically just sub for ground beef. The chunks however-are a little trickier.I actually used to hate them until I learned how to make them right! These chunks(for lack of a more appetizing word-nuggets maybe?)taste just like the beef in beef and broccoli. First-get a pot of water boiling and add 2 cups of the dried TVP nuggets:

Be careful because these LOVE boiling over! Simmer for about 10 minutes and check for doneness. They should be soft and moist throughout-if they are still hard in the middle let it go a bit longer. Drain.

Gather the ingredients for the marinade:

• 1/2 cup mirin


• 3Tbs. soy sauce


• 2 cloves minced garlic(or 1 tsp. minced)


• 1 tsp. sesame oil


• 2 tsp. chili paste


• 1 Tbs. vinegar


• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger(I forgot to put that in the pic-oops)

Whisk all ingredients together and stir in TVP nuggets. Marinate for a few hours,stirring occasionally. When you are ready:

Heat up about 1 Tbs. of olive oil and dump everything in the pan. Fry,stirring around often until the nuggets start to brown. They should soak up all the marinade after a bit. Add a little water to deglaze the pan and cook until browned to your liking.

Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of the finished product! I served it on a bed of couscous laced with olives,lemon and olive oil,broccoli and green salad. Really delicious dinner! I am thinking of doing skewers of them at our next BBQ.

How Lucky Am I?

Look what I have in my fridge! A whole carton of iced Panera coffee! This could be dangerous...but at least it saves me a little bit of money. Every afternoon I get a major jones for some coffee-especially when it's hot-I want iced coffee! I just put some cubes in it,some soymilk and stevia and I am a really happy girl :)

On to the pizza...

Check out this vegan Italiano masterpiece! We used a Spano crust,fra diavolo sauce,olives,banana peppers,spinach and mushrooms. I will even reveal my "big secret" to making vegan pizza taste so good-even to meat eaters. Fennel seed! It gives it a "meaty" taste-sausage usually has  fennel in it so it gives it that illusion. Everyone who tastes our homemade pizza is surprised how good it is. Another secret-we serve it with Kraft Creamy Italian Dressing for dipping-yup-it's vegan!