Friday, September 26, 2008

Stocked Pantry Satisfaction

Today has been yet another full day, despite my not having classes. How does that happen?! The day's schedule included a workout, banana pancakes (!), Whole Foods trip, tutoring, Target trip, laundry...and other such wildly adventurous activities.

I got it all done though, so now I am left with a feeling of accomplishment, combined with a feeling of satisfaction--with 2 grocery runs today, my pantry is pretty well-stocked. I scored some good produce, Sunbutter, and organic yogurt at Whole Foods, while I loaded up on frozen fruits/veggies, canned beans, and a few odds and ends at Target. I am such a foodie/dork--new groceries excite me so to no end.


Despite my collegiate chaos, I have managed to churn out a few interesting dishes these past few days...


Wednesday
I finally got a chance to try VeggieGirl's smoothie recipe! For months now, I have been meaning to experiment with her favorite comination: banana, berries, hemp protein, and spinach. I didn't have any hemp milk on hand (as her version requires), but I think the soymilk served as an adequate substitute. This was my first time adding spinach to a smoothie, and I think I'll continue adding it in the future--it adds lots of nutrition without any difference in taste. Plus, you get cool green flecks throughout the beverage. Sweet.
Thursday
Breakfast yesterday was pretty simple, but it included lots of my favorites: butternut squash and almond butter (although not together). On whole wheat toast, I spread the last of my almond butter (a tragic event, as I am too poor to replenish my supply). I also combined a container of plain yogurt with butternut squash, cinnamon, and stevia--this was by far the best part of this breakfast! A juicy peach made for a nice end to the fiberful feast.
Pre-run snack was just a simple chocolate chip Clif bar. Tasty and effective, as always. For lunch, I got creative with the most recent secret ingredient, apples. I decided on a vegan tempeh apple sandwich, an idea inspired by a recipe from Whole Foods Market (I am a loyal subscriber and reader of their newsletter). I didn't use the oven as the recipe suggests, but rather used the stovetop for convenience and speed. I *might* have forgotten about the apples simmering, thus their slightly charred appearance. Anyway, that's agave mustard on the bread beneath the apples and tempeh. I was doubly ambitious in the kitchen yesterday, as I tried a Baked Eggplant Moussaka from the Imagine Soups website. Clearly, I didn't follow the recipe precisely, as I did not have all of the ingredients on hand, so I just ended up with a layered vegetable casserole dish. On the side, I had some couscous, salad with kidney beans, and kefir with peanuts. An odd combination, but tasty nonetheless. I discovered yet another tasty flavor duo for my smoothie last night: strawberries and peaches. It was a discovery out of necessity rather than experimentation in that I didn't have much frozen fruit left. The texture on this concoction was perfection, likely due to a greater proportion of fruit. I used the Nutiva Berry Pomegranate hemp for this one. Friday
After a workout at the gym this morning, I treated myself to a batch of banana-chocolate chip pancakes, using the Sweet Eats recipe as a guide. I don't think there are many dishes that can match the euphoria of banana-chocolate chip pancakes. So sweet. So indulgent. So YUM.
Before heading out to an afternoon of tutoring appointments, I made a basic TLT: Tempeh Lettuce Tomato (wrap). I cooked the last of my tempeh in Bragg's and garlic, then rolled it into a whole wheat tortilla with lettuce, tomato, vegan mayo and mustard. I served it alongside a salad and a sliced Rome apple (a new Whole Foods purchase).

Following the Target run, I was hungry and not in the mood for a laborious recipe...so leftovers it was! I combined Annie's Mac & Cheese (whole grain, organic) with broccoli and garlic. I also had a basic salad with peanuts for crunch.
Well, I am off to relax with Kristen and catch up on What Not to Wear episodes. G'night all.

11 comments:

Andrea of Care to Eat said...

We got your recipe down! What is your name so we can give you a proper shout out?
I love the recipes from Whole Foods - I just discovered them a couple weeks ago so I have yet to make anything :( I have that little dog glass too - it's the perfect size!

Anon said...

i LOVE what not 2 wear haha.

is sunbutter the same texture as other nutbutters? i've never tried it!!

Nicole said...

Mmmm! I love chocolate chip pancakes. In fact, I love nearly every food you ate in this entry.

Little Miss Sunshine said...

Olalala, adding spinach into smoothie is definitely a GREAT idea!! Kudos to you and Veggiegirl for it! :D

Oh btw, just a question about tempeh... when you cook it, how do you know when is it done/cooked through?? I cooked up some yesterday - the texture was like mushy... eek! it doesn't taste that great :( Ne tips to share?? :D

Anonymous said...

I'm going to try that tempeh sandwich soon, it sounds so yummy!


Gotta love the banana chocolate chip pancakes! That combo is amazing!!

ChickPea said...

Andrea/CaretoEat: Whole Foods is a great resource for recipes--love them! Anyway, my first name is Caroline--thanks!
Andrea: Sunbutter is really creamy (provided that you don't buy the crunchy variety!). I love it as an oatmeal topper, plus it provides lots of nutrients that other nut butters don't have.
SweetPotato: Yay! Glad you liked the post.
Cecilia: I don't really have a scientific method for preparing tempeh, as I don't have as much experience with it as I do with tofu. I like to pan-fry it (with spices, garlic, etc.) so as to avoid the mushiness issue though.
Shelby: At first I thought it was an odd combination, but when I actually tried it, it was fabulous!! Love the sweet apples and agave mustard with the savory tempeh.

Emma said...

mmm those tempeh recipes look really scrummy! Pancakes are always a fab brekkie treat too!

Thanks for linking to the wholefoods recipe site- I am now a subscriber to their newletter and am looking forward to trying out some new recipes! : )

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

Sounds like a busy but FUN day you had!! Hooray!! :0)

Okay, I simply CANNOT pick a favorite here; but I WILL of course thank you for trying my smoothie recipe!! So glad that you liked it :0)

Anonymous said...

I know exactly what you mean, days of chores go by so fast!

I actually like you eating schedule. I stay up late studying so, I like eating at night.

Would you mind giving me some specific examples of your 5pm snacks. It is always that snack that I am starving, but don't want to eat a full meal since dinner is coming. You mentioned that you eat nuts or nut spread at snack. Those are calorie dense foods. So when you are hungry do those fill you initially. I know in the long run fats keep you satisfied but when you are initially hungry is my problem becuase then you are just looking for volume and out come the carbs for me! So I would love to hear your suggestions that are less carb focused and more healthy. Do you ever do bars ie: lara bars, or prefer your own nut combos. Sorry for all the qs. You seem to have college eating down to a skill- something that's hard to do!

Anonymous said...

This is an awesome blog! Those pancakes look delicious. You're right, they're like the most indulgent food around. I want to eat them slathered in PB. :)

ChickPea said...

Rebecca: You inspired me to devote an entire post to that topic. Enjoy!
Erin: Thanks! Banana pancakes ARE awesome with PB. Actually, a few weeks ago I had cocoa banana pancakes with cashew butter. YUM!