Delicious Ratatouille-ish

I had Thursday off so i spent a chunk of my free time food shopping. I visited Trader Joe's where I picked up mushrooms, asparagus, organic clementines, olives and a chocolate bar for my dad and black licorice for my mom, (Hugh's vacationing at their house so it's a mini offering).  I stopped at Shaw's on my way back home from visiting my mom and Hugh. I bought organic celery, organic carrots, 1 organic cucumber, organic arugula, zucchini, vine-ripe tomatoes, swiss chard, hummus for dan, green grapes, basil, red potatoes and brown rice spaghetti... This is the fullest the fridge has looked in awhile...very exciting! P.s. The stockpile of beer belongs to Dan.

It's restaurant week, which is really two weeks long... Dan has been working f.o.r.e.v.e.r. He has been trying to eat healthy throughout the day but it's not always easy when you are surrounded by tempting food and rarely have time to eat a meal during a work shift. He actually asked me to pick him up a multivitamin a few days ago...(I smiled when i received the text).

Thursday night I made my own version of ratatouille from ingredients I had on hand: Asparagus, zucchini, vine-ripe tomatoes, red potatoes, mushrooms, swiss chard, garlic and fresh basil. I was also adding some of the veggies on the cutting board to a salad (that's where the avocado ended up). I sauteed the garlic in oil until it browned and then added red potatoes, mushrooms, zucchini, asparagus, tomatoes, chard and basil. I seasoned the stew with sea salt, red chili flakes and a dash of apple cider vinegar.

 

 

Delicious! I was originally going to put it over the brown rice spaghetti, but we opted for just veggies... It was filling along with all the other snack food we had in the newly replenished fridge. I'm pretty sure i ate 8 clementines for dessert.

VEGGIES GALORE and SNACKS...

 

I went food shopping today for Dan's dinner.. I couldn't figure out what to make so I kept picking up various colorful veggies...not exactly a friendly wallet method... Ultimately I decided on a veggie marinara over whole wheat pasta, sauteed collard greens with butter beans and artichoke hearts topped with roasted roots veggies and dressed with olive oil, lemon juice and sea salt...I always make Dan large portions because that's how I eat but apparently he has a small stomach. (what's up with that chef?) 

 

FYI: I ate most of this dish... sorry Dan. I sauteed collard greens with olive oil, butter beans and chopped artichoke hearts. I finished it with lemon juice and topped it with roasted root veggies. Delicious!

 

I made the sauce with extra-virgin olive oil, leek, garlic, red onion, fresh thyme, red chili flakes, salt, button mushrooms, red bell pepper,  canned crushed tomatoes, fresh basil, lemon juice, and agave.

Last night Dan came home from a 16 hour shift and told me that he didn't eat anything all day except for tiramisu and a canolli. Where's the nutrition?! Ironically in the restaurant industry employees rarely eat...too much to do and too little time! He always opens the fridge at midnight looking for sustenance and too often there are only avocados and arugula so he reaches for the sugar loaded ice cream...
Today I picked up some healthier snack food items for his late night snack attack:

 

Organic Bananas, Hemp Chips with Organic Salsa, Clementines and Vegan trail mix!

 

 

Walnuts, Almonds, Cranberries, Raisins, Goji Berries,  Pumpkin Seeds and Golden berries!

 Hugh-man is visiting my mom and dad for a few days. He loves staying at the house and playing with his friends. I snapped some pictures before I dropped him off. He was licking his lips in anticipation for her home cooked meals...

Double Portabella Burger

 

 I made Dan a  double portabella burger for Dinner tonight. I toasted a multi-grain bun and added 2 sauteed mushrooms, quick sauteed sliced vine ripe tomatoes with red onion, and purple kale. He was a fan! This meal took about 20 minutes to prepare and it was super healthy!

CURRY Birthday Dinner

 

Dan made me a birthday feast last night. Red Curry with coconut milk, red curry paste, bell peppers, tomatoes, fingerling potatoes, carrots, scallion, celery, onion, garlic, cilantro, toasted hazelnuts and brown rice. It was delicious... proven by the fact that I had 3 servings.

flowers for my birthday...

TRIP HOME FOR A BIRTHDAY DINNER

Dan, Hugh and I traveled home on Sunday for a family dinner with my parents and youngest sister. My mom texted me earlier in the week asking what Dan would like for dinner....she didn't bother asking the birthday girl... Apparently she knows me so well that she assumed that I would recite my standard request: salad, avocados, tomatoes, baked potato and veggies to sautee. She was right. I have been craving baked potatoes this month so I paired it up with sauteed Portobello mushrooms, Bell Peppers, cherry tomatoes, herbs, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt. It was a very relaxing day and I enjoyed getting out of the city and seeing my family. At the end of dinner when Hugh was working the table with his charming sweet ways, my mom offered to watch him since Dan and I have a busy work week. I couldn't really say no since he will have a lot more fun being busy throughout the day opposed to sleeping in the apartment waiting for our return.... I miss him.

 

On the trip to my parents' house Dan stopped at his job to pick up some wine for dinner... he was gone for at least 10 minutes and Hugh wouldn't take his eyes off the front door waiting for his return...

DELIVER ME...VEGAN LUNCH

 

Today I delivered a vegan lunch to my sister at her office. She requested burritos with a collard green wrap. I made her two wraps and packaged them up for the quick walk to her office. Hugh-man accompanied me, (of course), and thoroughly enjoyed the change of scenery. The wraps included brown rice, salsa, guacamole and black beans. I used organic canned black beans but I prefer to soak and cook dry beans, (I was nervous about my cooking time availability this morning). 

 

 

My sister, who is not vegan, declared that she could eat the burritos everyday. Very exciting... I love to prove that vegan food can be flavorful, satiating and healthy. She ordered flax crackers with guacamole and salsa for Friday...

DATE ME!

If you have a serious sweet tooth and want a healthy alternative to refined sugars (void of nutritional value) you MUST try this RAW VEGAN SWEET TREAT...Coconut date rolls! These 12 flavor bursting rolls are reminiscent of soft caramel chews. The only two ingredients, (soft dates and unsweetened coconut flakes), are RAW, vegan, organic and Nutritious! I went through a hard core crush on this item and could easily eat the entire package in one sitting- guilt free. If you do end up eating more than you planned you will not have consumer's remorse. When I used to eat white sugar I would always get a headache and feel bloated afterwards, automatically feeling gross. Date rolls do not have that negative effect on me,  due to the natural sugar content and fiber of the dates. Also, since they do contain nutritional value you will feel satiated opposed to refined sugar candy that is like a drug...you always need more. DATES are a good source of iron, niacin and potassium. Calcium, magnesium and vitamins A, B1 and B2 are present in small amounts.* So next time you have to have something sweet, go pick up a date to satiate that sugar craving! You won't be disappointed!

*Wood, Rebecca. The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia.