For too many women, the journey towards fitness has been paved with destructive self-talk and unattainable images of "perfection." It's time to break these cycles of violence, learn to own our strength, and grow to love our uniquely beautiful bodies! Join me on my journey towards strength
and self-acceptance as I prepare for the Mudderella race on May 31, 2014, and as our team works to raise money for Futures Without Violence.
Showing posts with label Cruelty-free cuisine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cruelty-free cuisine. Show all posts
Me: What should I call my kale salad? This is the first recipe that I've ever really made up on my own. This is exciting. Rainbow Kale Salad?
Tim: How about I-Don't-Know-What-To-Call-This Kale Salad.
Me: Nooooo, it needs to be special!
Tim: Why does it need to be special?
Me: Because I'm going to pin it on Pinterest and it's going to go viral!
Tim: ...
Me: ...Okay, tempering self-expectations over here.
Tim: That's probably a good idea.
Alright, so I doubt that my beautiful kale salad recipe is going to be seen by zillions of people, BUT... it is special to me, because I made this up so it's a Sarah original. Huzzah!
Tonight after my workout, I grabbed a handful of pecans (yay protein!) and then threw together some of the delicious veggies we had in the fridge, and I was delighted by the result. This is a total powerhouse blend of fresh, raw veggies enhanced by the bold, tangy dressing. It's also very simple to prepare, and easily adaptable so it's a great way to use up vegetables you have sitting in the fridge. Hope you enjoy!
Bright and Bold Kale Salad
Ingredients:
5 stalks of kale
1/2 red cabbage, shredded
1/2 head of cauliflower (~2 cups)
3 carrots, grated
1/4 c. olive oil
1 T lemon juice
1.5 tsp. red wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. maple syrup (or your preferred sweetener)
1 T nutritional yeast (this is a staple for a lot of vegans, but if you don't have any then no worries
Directions:
De-leaf the kale the kale and loosely chop the leaves. Chop the cauliflower into small, bite-sized pieces. Toss the kale, shredded red cabbage, grated carrots, and cauliflower in a large salad bowl and set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, maple syrup, and nutritional yeast, and pour it over the vegetables. Mix well and serve or refrigerate immediately.
In honor of my parents, who are actually in Ireland (and probably enjoying a pint of Guinness as we speak!), I wanted to post a classic Irish dish, vegetarianized: Shepherd's Pie. Tim and I have tried one version that we didn't like very much, so this year we're planning to try making this recipe. I'm a little uncomfortable sharing a recipe I haven't actually tried before with all of you... but we can experiment with it together!
3 lbs. Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into large dice
5 T unsalted butter
2 lbs. crimini mushrooms, stemmed and quartered
Salt and freshly-ground pepper
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
3 medium celery stalks, finely chopped
5 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 medium celery root (celeriac), peeled and diced -- but don't worry if you can't find it! I think you can also supplement with an additional stalk of celery. (shrug)
3 medium carrots, peeled and small diced
2 medium parsnips, peeled and small diced
1 T finely chopped fresh sage leaves
1 T finely chopped fresh thyme
2/3 c. whole milk
Directions
In a medium bowl, whisk together broth, wine, tomato paste, and flour until evenly combined and smooth. Stir in dried mushrooms and set aside to reconstitute, at least 30 minutes. Strain mushrooms before using, reserving liquid.
Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with heavily salted water by 2 inches. Bring potatoes to a boil and cook until fork tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.
Heat the oven on low broil and place a rack in the upper third. Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a 3 to 4 quart Dutch oven (or oven-safe saucepan) over medium-high heat. When it foams, add half the mushrooms and cook, stirring rarely, until mushrooms are browned, about 5 minutes. Remove mushrooms from the pan, season well with salt and remaining freshly ground black pepper, and set aside. Repeat to cook off remaining mushrooms.
Return pan to stove over medium heat and add 1 T of the butter, onion, celery, and garlic, and cook until softened and golden, about 2 minutes. Add celery root (celeriac), carrots, parsnips, and herbs, and season well with salt and freshly-ground black pepper. Cook until browned and softened, about 6 minutes.
Add wine mixture to pan and deglaze by stirring and scraping up any browned bits. Let cook until simmering and slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in reserved mushrooms and any juices that have accumulated and simmer until slightly thickened, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and reserve in pan.
When potatoes are ready, drain well. Return to pan and mash until uniformly smooth. Fold in remaining 2 T of butter and the milk, and season well with salt and freshly-ground black pepper. (You can also add cream cheese, sour cream, or cheddar cheese to the potatoes, per your own taste preference.) If necessary, keep warm over low heat.
Dot potatoes over vegetable mixture and spread to edges of pan to cover completely. Rough up the edges of the potatoes so that there are bits that will get browned and crunchy. Broil until top is golden, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Bailey's Irish Cream Frosting!
The recipe I'm sharing is from the book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, my favorite go-to vegan cupcake recipe book, and it is delectable. Unfortunately Guinness is apparently not vegan (because apparently the isinglass used in the brewing process is made from fish bladders...? Or something? Tim can explain it to you if you're curious), so if you're picky about things like that then skip the Guinness and go for your favorite stout. But if that doesn't bother you too much then stick with the classic Guinness. I also don't think Bailey's Irish Cream is vegan (because of the cream - see how sharp I have become?) but... for Bailey's, I make exceptions. Always. :)
I'll post my own photo if I get a chance to make them this week, but if not, here's a little preview of the amazingness that awaits you:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line muffin pan with paper liners. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
By hand or with an electric mixer, whisk together the soy milk and vinegar in a large bowl. Let sit for 3-5 minutes. Add the stout (Guinness), sugar, oil, and vanilla to the soy milk mixture and beat until foamy. Add the dry ingredients in two batches and beat for about 2 minutes until well-incorporated.
Pour batter into liners, filling them three-quarters of the way full. Bake 20 to 22 minutes, until the top springs back when lightly touched (or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean). Transfer to a wire rack and allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
To make the frosting...
Beat the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until creamy and smooth. Add the Bailey's and half of the confectioners sugar and beat until smooth. Add the second half of the sugar and beat until smooth.
To frost the cupcakes, you can smooth the icing on with a knife, OR you can use a pastry bag to pipe on a design. If you don't have a pastry bag, you can use a Ziploc baggy too. Just fill the bag with frosting, cut a hole in one corner, pipe the frosting out in swirl onto the cupcake, and enjoy!
And lastly, an Irish Blessing for you...
Count your blessings instead of your crosses; Count your gains instead of your losses.
I've decided that I need to create a little more structure to this blog, in part to avoid the writing paralysis I described in my last post (because the longer I go without posting, the more pressure I feel to produce a brilliant post), and in part because I've realized that there's a wide array of things I want to share with all of you! I want this blog to address mind, body, and spirit, so I'm going to break it down into a different theme for each day of the week. I'll try to keep up with it as best I can, but this is a judgment-free zone (and that includes self-judgment!) so if I miss a day or two here or there, so be it.
Today I'd like to introduce a topic that is near and dear to my heart: cruelty-free dining! As most of you know, I've been vegetarian for eight and a half years now (attempted semi-vegan/localtarian for three), and this journey has expanded my culinary horizons as well as opened my heart. When I think about what it means to engage in "fitness without violence," I inevitably find myself thinking about the role that vegetarianism and my efforts to eat humanely play in my overall health. I choose not to eat meat for a wide variety of reasons (most of which I'll probably explore at some point... just not in too much depth today), and I try to support local, sustainable, and humane egg and cheese producers and vegetable farmers. I do this because I believe that with every purchase we make, we make an impact on the world. Vegan baker extraordinaire Colleen Patrick-Goudreau says it best:
"Individually and collectively, we all say we want to make a difference in the world, find meaning in our lives, and create meaning in the lives of others. We want to make a positive contribution to the world and leave it a better place than we found it. Many people say these things, but they realize that to make a difference, they may have do to something different. They don't realize the power they have to make this happen, and some don't even try. I learned long ago that it's not that we can make a difference in the world, it's that we do make a difference in the world - every day, with every choice we make. Every action we take, every product we buy, every dollar we spend, everything we do has an effect on something or someone else. There are no neutral actions. I think this idea is both frightening and empowering for many. It's frightening because it means we're responsible and have a tremendous amount of power. It's empowering because it means we're responsible and have a tremendous amount of power. We get to choose not whether we want to make a difference but whether we want to make a positive or negative difference."
--The Joy of Vegan Baking
Basically, as much as we would love to pretend that nobody gets harmed by our seemingly innocuous decisions (like grabbing a burger for lunch), every choice we make impacts the world in some way, and the sad truth is that unless you pay close attention, the vast majority of food at our disposal has a highly negative cost. There are terrible human rights issues at stake in food production, both animal and plant, and even though it's exhausting to try to stay informed about your food's sourcing, ultimately we have the opportunity to choose compassion and non-violence with every meal. I'm not perfect on this issue - none of us are - but I try my best to choose compassionately and to invest in food wisely.
I also choose to eat vegetarian because I've discovered that adopting this diet has helped me to become more mindful about what I put into my body. I try to choose foods that will nourish my body and give it strength, and to incorporate as many greens (I am obsessed with kale!) into my diet as possible, because they're what my body craves for energy. Vegetarianism helps me to listen more closely to what my body needs and to pay closer attention to the quality of the food I consume. Ultimately what it comes down to is that this is a lifestyle that nourishes both my body and my soul, and becoming vegetarian was one of the best decisions of my life.
I'm not here to convert you or force you to stop eating meal cold-turkey (hah - get it?). I simply want to draw some awareness to how our food consumption impacts not only our bodies but the broader world, and to invite you into conversation and reflection on your food choices. I also want to share with you some of the delicious recipes I've found that nourish my body and, hopefully, have a positive impact on the world.
Therefore, I hereby introduce... Meatless Mondays!
...Okay, so I wanted to think I was the first to come up with this fabulous slogan but apparently there's this whole awesome movement already in place. And here's the little promo video, just to give you a bit more info!
Every Monday I'm going to share a vegan or vegetarian recipe with you. I'd love for you to give Meatless Monday a try for yourself (because every meal makes a difference!) but again, no pressure from me. :)
This week's recipe is from The 30-Minute Vegan, and it's one of Tim's and my favorite recipes. It's quick, easily adaptable based upon what veggies are in season, and crammed full of delicious, healthy goodness. It's called Monk Bowl (for the "Zen simplicity" of the dish - a protein, a grain, and a green).
Monk Bowl (serves 4)
Ingredients:
1.5 cups uncooked quinoa (we prefer red)
3 cups water or vegetable stock
1 lb. extra-firm tofu, drained and pressed dry
2 T. soy sauce
1 T. coconut oil or other oil
2 T. water
8 cups assorted mixed vegetables - try broccoli, carrots, zucchini, or other favorites (we always toss in kale!)
Flax oil or oil of choice
Nutritional yeast (optional)
Soy sauce or sea salt (optional)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the quinoa in a small pot with 3 cups of water over high heat. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until all of the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
While the quinoa is cooking, cube the tofu by slicing the 1 lb. block into thirds or fourths, pausing to press the liquid out of the cutlets before cubing. Place cubed tofu in a small bowl with the soy sauce, oil, and water. Allow to marinate for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Place the tofu and marinade ingredients on a baking tray and roast for 15 minutes.
While the tofu and quinoa are cooking, take a breath and begin the third part of the symphony. (That's literally what it says in the book, haha!) Add about 1 inch of water to a medium size pot with a steamer basket inside. Turn the heat to medium-high. Cut up your vegetables of choice and steam them until tender, about 8 minutes, depending on the vegetables.
When the quinoa is done cooking, fluff it up with a fork. Place the quinoa in a bowl, top with the steamed vegetables and tofu, and season with flax oil, nutritional yeast, and soy salt or seal salt to taste.
Substitutions: If you've tried and tried to like tofu but still can't stand the texture, you can replace the tofu with beans. Simply heat a can of your favorite (pinto, cannellini, and black-eyed peas work especially well), or reheat pre-cooled beans. You can also replace the quinoa with pasta (brown rice noodles and soba or udon, perhaps) or rice, and you can also add whatever sauce you would to the recipe. Basically... there are endless variations and combinations to this! Be creative and enjoy.
Alrighty, that's all for tonight because I am le tired. Hope you enjoy your first Meatless Monday meal, if you try it this week, and that you're all having a wonderful start to the week!
More to come tomorrow - stay tuned for the Tuesday theme reveal. :)
