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Appetites and Adventures

Butternut Squash Chia Pudding

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Book Club dinners when you’re on a cleanse are hard.

They’re even harder when you’re hosting and therefore responsible for food.  The icing on the cake is that the theme is French (to go with this month’s book selection).  Who ever heard of French vegan food?!

This may have had me sweating a bit.

So I said to myself:  Man up.  You can do this thing.  I think. 

Predictably, I’m got a late start today so the details will have to come later, but it went really well!  Like, 100x better than I expected.

The menu included:

  • Provençal Spread and Veggies
  • Salade Niçoise with Tempeh “Tuna”
  • Oven-Roasted Tomatoes Stuffed with (vegan!) Goat Cheese
  • Roasted Eggplant Bruschetta

I warned everyone ahead of time that it would be a clean dinner… and they subsequently brought meats, desserts, and wine. 🙂

French wine Dessert was the saddest thing for me to miss.  There are so many possibilities for making French desserts that would have been fun to create.  There will be many other dessert opportunities in my life though.  And bottles of French wine.

In order to feel a little less left out, I created my own dessert to enjoy.  And you know what… I can honestly say it was satisfying.  (But I did swoon a little over homemade banana pudding.)

 

Chia pudding has long been a breakfast favorite.  As of last night, it’s been upgraded to dessert.

No this isn’t chocolate cake.  But it is good.

Made like a traditional chia pudding (chia + liquid + congeal in the fridge), the twist here is the sweet squash and a quick blend at the end.

The cocoa-flavored stevia did give it notes of chocolate-y goodness.  I also loved the classic pie flavors the vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg lent the dish.

A spin mix in the Magic Bullet at the end smoothed out the chia to make this like the pudding you grew up eating,  (Thanks to Kasey @ Power Cakes for the idea!)

Yes, you can have your pudding even if you don’t eat your meat.

 

Butternut Squash Chia Pudding

  • 1/2 butternut squash, roasted
  • 3/4 C unsweetened coconut milk
  • 1 T chia seeds
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 7-8 drops cocoa stevia
  • Shake of salt

In a small bowl, mash up butternut squash until it becomes a puree (some small pieces are ok).  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 mins (or overnight for breakfast).  The chia will absorb most of the liquid.

Place mix in a blender (I used my Magic Bullet) and blend until smooth (about 20 seconds).  Remove, place in bowl, and enjoy!

Note: This would make a great post-workout snack!  Just add a scoop of protein powder and increase the amount of liquid you mix in.

Unfamiliar with the benefits of chia?  Click here for my post on why they rock!

***

I cannot wait to share the rest of the meal with you all!

For those with diet restrictions, do you ever feel left out in food-centric social settings?  How do you navigate?

Has anyone ever been to France?  I’m thinking that may be this year’s big trip…

Sesame Root Veggie Fries

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I can be really lame.

Saturday night I put the French station on Pandora and curled up in my PJs to finish my book for tonight’s book club,  The Sharper the Knife, The Less You Cry.  It’s my turn to host this week and I terrified everyone with promises of cleansing food.  A flurry of emails volunteering meat, desserts, and wine followed.  Whatever – I think my food is good!  😉

Anyhow… Saturday while reading I snacked on lavar and kombucha… and it was one of the most glorious nights ever.  Cheers to fermented tea, PJs, and being lame.

Here’s what I thought of the book:

The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter, and Tears at the World's Most Famous Cooking SchoolThe Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter, and Tears at the World’s Most Famous Cooking School by Kathleen Flinn

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a fun, easy read. The book is well-written; it isn’t going to be a classic, but if you love food you’ll enjoy it. It is an eye-opener for anyone who’s dreamed of going to Le Cordon Bleu. I don’t know that I could stomach some of the butchering they were required to do! The best part is that she includes recipes for some of her favorite dishes.

View all my reviews

That pretty much sums up my weekend.  I worked out with 2 friends on Saturday morning (2 separate workouts – I was gassed!).  The second work out was followed up with this Butternut-Cherry Bomb protein shake… I made one for my “normal” eating workout buddy too and she loved it despite its color!!!  It kind of made my day.

Other than that it was an anti-social, errand-running weekend.  Perfectly punctuated with fries.  Surprise, I got a little too excited over dinner.

These baked Sesame Root Veggie Fries were better than the real thing to me!  Disclaimer: I don’t actually like white potatoes.

The seasoning I came up with is one I’ll be repeating in other dishes – the sweet coconut oil combined with the nutty sesame seeds, a little cayenne heat, and a touch of cinnamon made my taste buds jump for joy.  It was like some Thai-fry-fusion gloriousness.

Served with a side of dijon-spiked lentils.

I loved the parsnips.  They were the most french fry-like of the mix, and their milder taste lets the seasoning shine.

The beets didn’t wow me.  They weren’t bad, but their flavor overpowered the rub.

You know it’s good when the decision about which piece to save for the last bite is a tough one.  The sweet potato ended up being the last bite – that added sweetness from the potato made it seem almost like dessert.

Recipe at bottom of post.

This week was killer for weights.  I’m still “meh” on the cardio… I attempted to run again on Friday and had to give it up after 1.25 miles due to the pain.  Saturday I was able to tag along with a friend to a spin class.  It was awesome! Such a different workout for me.  A different workout that meant I was so sore Sunday I didn’t do my final BodyRock fit test.  That’s going to happen over a lunch workout today – I can’t wait to see the progress, and to start the February challenge!

I also checked out a new workout in this month’s Food & Wine.  This is a routine I could get into.  Who’s with me? 🙂

Workout Recap (2/13 – 2/19)

Sesame Root Veggie Fries

Inspired by YumUniverse

  • 1 medium beet
  • 1 sweet potato
  • 1 parsnip
  • 2 tsp sesame seeds
  • 1/2 – 1/4 tsp cayenne
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tsp liquid coconut oil
  • S+P, to taste

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Place sesame seeds, cayenne, and cinnamon into a small food processor (I use my Magic Bullet) and blend until seeds are broken into tiny pieces (~20 secs).

Slice veggies into thin slices and spread evenly across a foil-lined baking sheet.  Pour melted coconut oil over the veggies, sprinkle seed mixture over it, and toss until evenly combined.

Bake for 30-45 mins, tossing once halfway through.

Enjoy!

***

Sunday I was honored to make the FoodBuzz Top 9 for my Butternut Thyme Hummus.  Thanks for the Buzz, friends! 🙂

What was the highlight of your weekend?

Is anyone else in a book club?  What is the last book you read?

Weekend Fun + Roasted Lemon Pepper Cabbage

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Particularly awesome weekends make it hard to go back to work.

 

Friday I had dinner at Wahoo (how awesome is that name?!) with one of my oldest friends.

 

Beet Salad with goat cheese, toasted walnuts, arugula and mint vinaigrette

 

Then I came home and did something I haven’t done in a long time – I curled up in bed with a nice scotch and read a book.  My first book of 2012 was Room.  I also started using GoodReads again, thanks to a reminder from Carol.

 

RoomRoom by Emma Donoghue

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The first half of this book was really, really slow. It was an especially hard read since it was written in the voice of a 5 year old. The second half was better, but depressing. I can’t say I recommend it.

View all my reviews

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Saturday I woke up to some exciting news – my Spinach Shiitake Miso Soup made the Food Buzz Top 9!  It made my day. 🙂  Thank YOU for the Buzz, and welcome new readers!  In case you missed it, check out my soup and the other 8 awesome recipes here.

 

 

I had a crazy list of errands to tackle, so I made a fun lunch to fuel it.  This resulted in me eating 1/2 a head of cabbage.  It was so good I couldn’t stop!  Clearly I didn’t learn my lesson about too much cabbage and gas (TMI, sorry) from the last time.

 

Roasted Lemon Pepper Cabbage and Asian-Inspired Lentil Loaf

 

This lemon-y roasted cabbage was so good I couldn’t stop eating it!  At the last minute I decided to add nutritional yeast to the mix, giving it a little more dimension.  I loved the rich nuttiness with all the lemon and pepper.  It was delicious with my Asian-Inspired Sweet Potato Lentil Loaf.

(Cabbage recipe at bottom)

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Saturday night I met up with a bunch local bloggers Carol, Heather, and Lee for the Atlanta Underground Market.

 

The market is wall-to-wall food samplings prepared by locals in their kitchens.  There is even a good variety of vegetarian and vegan food.  These aren’t restaurant owners, just home cooks and small-time bakers in Atlanta who want to share their food with a broader audience.  The website calls it an “incubator for new food talent.”

 

My favorites of the evening:

 

Teff bread with 4 Ethiopian tastes from Kushina Catering

L to R: Coconut Lime Yucca, Spicy Sweet Potato, Lemon Kale, Pumpkin Flax, Chocolate Parsnip Fig

 

Cookie Underground is one of the coolest ideas there.  They make cookies from vegetables!  Each cookies is about 50 calories and filled with good, clean vitamins and nutrients from fresh veggies.  Good thing because I could eat a dozen of the ancho and chipotle chili-laced Spicy Sweet Potato Cookies.

Sunday was a straight up lazy day of rest.  It was everything I hoped it would be.

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I was doing SO well with the Mile-a-Day Challenge… until Saturday’s run.  Around mile 2 I began having sharp pain in my left knee.  I didn’t twist it or anything, so I stretched a bit and kept going thinking it would work itself out.  Notsomuch.  It only got worse and I limped the last couple of miles home. I have no idea what happened… it still hurts to walk!  Needless to say, I skipped my Sunday mile-a-day and took a rest day instead. 🙁

Workout Recap (1/2 – 1/8)

  • Monday – This Biceps/Back workout with 1 mile intervals
  • Tuesday – This BodyRock, 1 mile run, TRX suspension class
  • Wednesday – This Tris/Chest workout with 1 mile intervals, 100 push-ups
  • Thursday – Kickboxing, 1 mile run, 100 push-ups
  • Friday – Legs, 1 mile run, 100 push-ups
  • Saturday – 5 mile run, 6 min plank rotation, 100 push-ups
  • Sunday – REST, 100 push-ups

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Roasted Lemon Pepper Cabbage

  • 1/2 medium head of cabbage
  • Juice from 1/2 lemon
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 2 tsp nutritional yeast
  • 1/4 freshly ground pepper
  • Salt, to taste

 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil (spray with olive oil if not non-stick).

Cut cabbage into wedges, then trim the core bits from each wedge.  

Place wedges on pan, evenly spaced.Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper.  Using a brush, coat the top of each wedge. Flip wedges over and repeat on other side.

Roast cabbage for ~10 mins, or until the beginning to brown.  Carefully flip the wedges and roast from an additional 8-10 mins, until the cabbage is browned and tender.

Serves 1-2.

***

Tonight is my first book club!  I’m really loving the motivation to read for fun again.

What’s the best book you’ve read lately?

Anything fun/exciting happen this weekend?


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