Hey, It’s OK!

Ω July 24th, 2010 Ω Tagged , , , , , , , , Ω 20 Comments

… to have salad and chocolate cake for dinner – sometimes!

So says well-read Jessie.

Case in point:

After a long morning of browsing the stacks at a library book sale (see above) and a very late lunch, I had a hard time even THINKING about dinner. I decided to eat what my body was craving at dinnertime: an enormous bowl of veggies with egg.

I steamed some carrots and threw them over a bed of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and red peppers (fresh from our deck!), then topped the veggies with a poached egg and Amy’s Goddess dressing. I must have been deficient in micronutrients because I felt much better after eating this salad (I also need to empty the fridge of perishables). Lately I haven’t been taking advantage of summer’s fresh fruits and veggies, which is silly. We need to eat vitamin-rich fruits and veggies every 4 to 6 hours to take advantage of their antioxidant properties, so I will be making more of an effort to include these nutrient powerhouses in my diet.

That said, I knew I had to try a little of the chocolate cake we bought yesterday for dessert. This chocolate cake is from Billy’s Bakery in Fairfield, CT and it is the most decadent mousse cake I’ve ever eaten.

Look at that glassy ganache frosting!

You gotta really like chocolate to enjoy this cake. A little goes a loooong way. While I won’t make a regular habit of veggies and chocolate cake for dessert, it was a nice treat.

Hmm, these food pictures are pretty disappointing: no natural light, the glare of overhead 60 watts apparent. Let’s look at some gorgeous island pictures instead:

Q: Do you get your 5 A Day? How do you incorporate fruits and veggies in your meals and snacks?

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A Plethora of Zucchini and Pancakes

Ω July 21st, 2010 Ω Tagged , , , , , , , Ω 19 Comments

When I bought several pounds of zucchini and summer squash at a farmstand last week, I thought I would be eating them up pretty quickly. Alas, the well-intentions of a soon-to-be-RD did not line up with my recent cravings for fresh fruit and leafy greens – the zucchini lay abandoned for a week and more. They started to feel a little … sad.

That's my zucchini on the right.

What’s the best way to show your zucchini a little love? Cook it!

I followed this recipe for zucchini pancakes, cutting out the frying oil (I cooked them on a nonstick pan instead):

Drizzled with a little VT maple syrup, these fluffy pancakes were the perfect change from my usual oatmeal-laden breakfast, along with ….

Breakfast salad à la Aletheia! This salad is no where near as creative as Aletheia’s masterful mixes, but it was pretty darn tasty. I think I ate plenty of veges today happy

I still had a couple of zucchini lying around after making the zucchini pancakes, so I decided to make a little something Peter begged pleaded promised me free raspberries asked me to make: zucchini bread. I followed this recipe, substituting white whole wheat flour for the all purpose and cutting the oil and sugar in half (surprise, Peter!).

I’m only showing you half the bread because the other half crumbled away faster than a cookie in Cookie Monster’s mouth.

A smear of PB on a slice of zucchini bread makes a veggieriffic snack with whole grains and healthy fats. I think I covered all my nutritional bases with that one.

Lastly … I don’t usually accept unsolicited guest post requests, but I enjoyed the recipe in this one (thanks, Sonya!). As you all know, I love PB, so this protein-packed snack is right up my alley (and will keep you full for a long time!).

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Peanut Butter & Jelly Protein Cakes

Pancakes have been my number one favorite food for as long as I can remember with peanut butter coming in close second. In my late 20’s I decided it was time to start eating healthier though and this would include altering my favorite at-least-once-a-week food. This absolutely delicious and filling dish was inspired by the low glycemic index diet and emphasis on protein with every meal touted by successful weight-loss campaigns like Nutrisystem. Here’s what I came up with:

· 1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
· 1/2 tsp. baking powder
· Dash salt
· 1/4 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (egg whites work too)
· 1 tbsp. light vanilla soymilk (or skim milk)
· 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
· 1 tablespoon jelly

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Add egg substitute, soymilk, and 2 tbsp. water. Mix thoroughly.
*Note: You can also mix the peanut butter to the batter mix and top with jelly. I just prefer the PB on the outside.

Bring a skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Add half the batter. Cook for 2 – 3 minutes, until pancake begins to bubble and is solid enough to flip. Flip and cook for an another 1 – 2 minutes, until both sides are lightly browned and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter. Top both pancakes with peanut butter and jelly and enjoy!

About the Author:
S. Sparks is a writer for small businesses and online stores with an emphasis on health and beauty. Some of her most recent work includes articles at BeautyBrief.com and TVTopTen’s Nutrisystem Review.

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Add a side of fruit (or a breakfast salad), and you’ve got a complete breakfast!

Q: What’s your favorite way to cook zucchini? Also, what are your favorite kind(s) of pancakes?

P.S. Head over to LeQuan‘s latest post for a chance to win a $40 CSN gift card! Start picking out your kitchen gadget now!
P.P.S. Also, check out Faith‘s Girard’s salad dressing giveaway for some delicious salad toppers!

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Short and Sweet

Ω July 17th, 2010 Ω Tagged , , , , , , , , Ω 26 Comments

Guess what guys! Exactly six months ago, I wrote my very first post on The Happiness in Health! Check out my first post here (nice job changing the default website address, Jessie).

How to celebrate? How about some Black Forest Oatmeal?

Hot oatmeal with fresh cherries and chocolate chips. And walnuts and shredded coconut, just ’cause. No liquor, of course. Hey, just because I ate a liquor-soaked breakfast once doesn’t mean I’m going to have it again. Goodness, people.

Cherries are in season here in the Northeast U.S. until the end of August, so check out your local Farmers’ Market for cherries and other great fresh fruits and veggies. If you live in the United States, visit Local Harvest to find your local Farmers’ Markets, farmstands, CSA, etc. For those of you with kids, take a look at the Captain 5 A Day website for some fun fruit and veggie games and activities. (Incidentally, Captain 5 A Day was created through a collaboration between my university and the Connecticut Department of Health – so I may be a little biased winking ).

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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I Crave Cafeteria Food

Ω July 14th, 2010 Ω Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , Ω 22 Comments

Gummy macaroni and congealed baked beans?


[source]

Of course not! Instead, I’m craving this little gem right here:

With the exception of the cafeteria’s seaweed salad, this noodle dish was the only cafeteria food that I LOVED while I was in China (I eventually had to discontinue consumption of the seaweed salad, as it gave me a rumbly in my tumbly – and not because I was hungry). I often tried to fight my way to the front of the cafeteria line stand close to the cook so that I could watch his deft hands grab the huge chunk of stiff dough and, with a knife at least twice as long as would be allowed in a U.S. cafeteria, shaving long noodles into a huge vat of boiling water below. No guards for his hands nor protection again splatters of boiling water. A dangerous meal, indeed. I wish I had taken a picture or video for you guys, but …

So! Since I arrived home a few weeks ago, I’ve been determined to make this shaved noodle dish. First, a stop at A Dong for some essential supplies.

Including these funky items that took me forever to find:

That would be dried black fungus, a delicious addition to many Chinese dishes. What? You don’t believe me? When have I ever steered you wrong? Okay, there was the Cookie Disaster of Feb 2010, but I was a younger person then! Besides, look what happens when you put the dried black fungus in water:

Püf!

Let’s back up to the part where I make the noodle dough. I used this recipe, skipping the step where I toss the noodles in peanut oil. Who needs oil when I have delectable toppings?

At first I was confused when the directions said to mix the flour and water until the dough is “shaggy”.

Ah. Let’s let the dough rest for several hours.

And then, the attempted noodle-shaving. I won’t sport with your patience by posting pictures of my pathetic attempts to whip a knife through that dough. Suffice to say that it didn’t work (the chunks of dough I splatted all over the kitchen agree with me). I also didn’t take any pictures. Instead, I commenced rolling and cutting.

While the noodles boiled, I prepared the toppings. In Beijing, I always chose two toppings: scrambled eggs and tomato (a very common dish in Beijing) and some sort of pungent dark sauce with black fungus and mushrooms. I didn’t know what the dark sauce was … until today. Behold, soybean paste:

On a whim, I bought this paste at A Dong. Mixed with a little water, this sauce was a dead ringer for the sauce I had in Beijing. Go me.

Noodles together with the two toppings:

Nom nom.

These noodles were delicious! With some Urfa red pepper flakes sprinkled on top, this dish brought me back to the hot, loud, and pungent atmosphere that was the University’s cafeteria. The noodles were perfectly chewy.

I also discovered a slightly sweetened jasmine tea that I chugged by the bottleful in China, right here in A Dong! Oh A Dong, how I adore thee!

I wanted to turn this bottled tea into bubble tea, so I bought dry tapioca balls from A Dong, but when I tried to rehydrate the bubbles …

Oh, well. Tea with milk, then!

Finally, after LeQuan showed off some figgy art, I knew I had to jump on THAT wagon.

… aaaand, that is the limited extent of my creativity big grin

Q: Have you ever tried to recreate a dish you ate in a restaurant or cafeteria? How did it turn out?

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