Tag: vegan

food · health

Random Meals – 4/10 – 4/22/22

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Wow. It feels like it’s been ages since I posted any meals, but we’re about right on time! Some key takeaways for me the past couple of weeks is I’ve grown more accustomed to not eating meat, especially red meat, and more salads are filling my plate. Check them out:

A bowl with a spoon and Skirt Steak & Stuffed Pepper.
Skirt Steak & Stuffed Pepper Bowl
A glass bowl with chopped tomatoes, cucumber, avocado and roasted chickpeas for Balsamic Salad.
Balsamic Salad – Prep
A glass bowl with a spoon and Balsamic Salad.
Balsamic Salad
A bowl with chopsticks and Kimchi Pasta Carbonara.
Kimchi Pasta Carbonara
A bowl with a spoon and One-Pot Creamy Mushroom Rice.
One-Pot Creamy Mushroom Rice
A countertop with a large salad mixing bowl of sun-dried tomatoes, fresh cut tomatoes, green onion, kalamata olives, onions, cucumber, mint, parsley; Tahini sauce jar; and a knife with a cut avocado.
Tabbouleh Jen Aniston Salad – Prep 1
A countertop with a large salad bowl mixed with Tabbouleh Jen Aniston Salad, Tahini sauce jar, and a knife with half a cut avocado.
Tabbouleh Jen Aniston Salad – Prep 2
A countertop with a large salad mixing bowl and a "Friends" serving bowl with Tabbouleh Jen Aniston Salad.
Tabbouleh Jen Aniston Salad
  • Skirt Steak & Stuffed Pepper Bowl
    • So, originally, this was supposed to be the Stuffed Pepper Bowl from Cassey Ho’s 2022 Glowup Sessions recipes, but I had bad luck with the tofu! Apparently the seal had been opened (I’m not sure how I didn’t catch that shopping), and the tofu smelled a little funky. Needless to say, I had to improvise and decided to make a skirt steak bowl, and my goodness it was super filling! And to be honest, it’s been so long since I’ve cooked red meat that I feel like I’ve lost touch on how to get the perfect pink middle!
  • Balsamic Salad
    • The social media algorithms are getting to me! I’m seeing more and more delicious vegetarian and/or vegan recipes pop up on my feeds, and they’ve all looked and tasted delicious. The Balsamic Salad is no exception. It’s super simple to make – the only long wait “cooking” time is toasting the seasoned chickpeas.
  • Kimchi Pasta
    • The Kimchi Pasta redemption arc! If you remember previously, I tried to make this before but had moldy kimchi, so I tried it again. The recipe calls for any regular pasta, but of course, I cooked it with veggie spaghetti. This was my first time making carbonara, and I think I did an okay job! Instead of bacon, which I never eat/cook myself, I substituted with cut pepperoni circles. Overall, this kimchi version is definitely an interesting take on the classic carbonara, so if you’re looking for a new twist, try this one!
  • One-pot Creamy Mushroom Rice
    • For whatever reason, finding this recipe came at a coincidental time because I was craving cooked mushrooms, which rarely happens honestly. The full recipe makes a lot of servings, so it’s definitely one you want to portion out throughout the week. One major takeaway, er confirmation, I got from making this is I most definitely prefer my mushrooms to be a supplement to a dish rather than the focus (i.e. on pizza, in risotto, etc.)
  • Tabbouleh Jen Aniston Salad
    • Okay, this dish was one I was most excited to try, and my mom specifically requested to eat as well. I told her about the original Jen Aniston salad (coming soon!) and how this recipe adapts it to a more tabbouleh approach. I’m proud to say my mom had 1.5 servings for lunch with me and even ate another helping when she got home! It feels really accomplishing when my chef of parents try my cooking and love it. This salad is going on the repeat list for sure – it’s fresh, it’s tasty and you get a great amount of veggies with it. The only down-ish side is the amount of prep there is; cutting so many vegetables takes time, but at least you can do that while the quinoa is cooking.

Sticking with the cleaner eating has been so good for me, and I’m honestly relieved switching to more vegan options hasn’t upset my body’s equilibrium or rejected the change. At the end of the day, I’m glad I never have to doubt I’m nourishing my body and providing what it needs to be healthy. Crossing my fingers I don’t have any future doctor appointments with consistent bad news!

xo
Siri

food · health

Random Meals – 3/28 – 4/8/22

sirisvayLeave a comment

More great recipes finds were discovered! As I’ve been slowly incorporating more plant-based and vegan elements to my diet, it’s been even more fun to be cooking. And I cannot express how GOOD it feels to know you’re feeding yourself healthy food instead of the guilt I feel when I eat unhealthy. I can’t go through another “bad news” doctor visit ever again!

A bowl of Vegan Warm Orzo Salad with a spoon.
Vegan Warm Orzo Salad
A bowl of Spicy Garlic Udon, with udon noodles, chopped cucumber and green onion.
Spicy Garlic Udon
A plate of a sliced Green Goddess Sandwich.
Green Goddess Sandwich
A plate of Hummus Toast; two slices of bread topped with hummus and slices of tomato and cucumber.
Hummus Toast
A plate of Curried Salmon with Basmati Rice and chopped red bell pepper, cucumber and tomatoes.
Curried Salmon with Basmati Rice
A bowl of Spicy Garlic Peanut Butter Udon noodles with chopsticks.
Spicy Peanut Butter Udon
  • Vegan Warm Orzo Salad
    • From the past two weeks, this was my favorite dish to make/eat. It’s a lot of prep work to chop all the vegetables and bake them, but once everything is together, it tastes divine. The recipe yields a lot for one person, so I was happy I was able to share some for lunch with my mom and send her home with her next lunch at home! Definitely going to make this again.
  • Spicy Garlic Udon
  • Green Goddess Sandwich
    • The more I make sandwiches, the more I understand why people say it’s an art to put one together and have the flavors work in harmony. This is by far the best sandwich I’ve made, and I also made one for my mom, which she loved! Having a regular turkey, tomato, lettuce and cheese sandwich is already delicious, but adding a smear of hummus and a smear of green goddess dressing is SUPERB.
  • Hummus Toast
    • Don’t let this deceive you! I thought I could handle both slices, but I got full after one!
  • Curried Salmon with Basmati Rice
    • This recipe may need some refinement on my part, but honestly, I was playing “What Do I Have Left in my Fridge?” like my dad does, and it was semi-successful. The salmon could have been less cooked – it was a little tough tough – and I’m still trying to perfect the best fluffy rice technique!
  • Spicy Peanut Butter Udon
    • Okay, I admit that I was a tiny bit skeptical when I put this on my meal list, but I’ve been OBSESSED with udon noodles and wanna cook it in all the ways! I ran out of greens to add to this dish, but the sauce flavor is on point. I tried it both with udon and instant ramen (without the packaged seasoning) and can confirm both are tasty!

Some call it madness, but there’s a method to my madness. My meal planning spans all dishes for two weeks so that I’m using the same ingredients without wasting, and I eliminate multiple trips to the grocery store. Next on my list that my mom and I are gonna try is a modified version of the infamous Jennifer Aniston salad!

What’s next on your recipe list?!

xo
Siri