Simple Stir Fry

I had a hankerin' for something a little sweet and a little spicy for lunch today, so I decided to look around my kitchen to see what I had.  At the end of the day, I came up with this very tasty stir fry...

If you have to do some shopping, you will want to pick up a package of firm tofu (or extra firm), some bean sprouts, a medium onion, some snap peas, garlic, fresh ginger and a couple chili peppers, which are selected based on taste/heat desires.  For this stir fry, I like to use a hotter pepper such as a thai green chilies or some Serrano peppers.  If you don't have it on hand, you'll also want some dry sherry, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, tobasco, brown sugar and some of your preferred stock (beef, chicken or vegetable).

So, drain and dry that tofu, cube it up and put it into a wok in some sesame and/or olive oil to fry it up a bit.  While that is going, mince up a few cloves of garlic and some of that ginger and put it into a little pile off to the side.  Now, chop up the peppers (remove seeds to reduce heat) and then coarsely chop the onion up.

Once the tofu starts to brown a bit, or when you lose your patience, throw in that garlic and ginger and stir everything up until it is fragrant, usually 30 seconds or so.  Toss in the onions and the chilies and cook that shit up until the onions are tender.

Now, lets sauce this baby up.  splash in some of that sherry and soy sauce, plus a healthy pinch of the brown sugar, a couple shakes of tobasco and a couple good sprinkles of the vinegar.  Then throw in about 1/4 cup of your stock and stir everything up really good.  Give it a taste, adjust sauce ingredients as required.  Throw in the snap peas and sprouts, heat everything up until hot.

So, now you have this awesome stir fry.  Serve it up over some rice or noodles (try it with soba noodles, it's good).  Enjoy.

Day of Indulgence

So, I gave in today and just ate whatever we decided wanted to have.  I think this is a good thing to do occasionally as everything is okay in moderation (well, not EVERYTHING, but food-wise, you are pretty safe).  So, as it was Mother's Day (insert Hallmark holiday rant here) I decided to make Eggs Benedict for breakfast, which have no redeeming health qualities that I can think of, and we have big juicy steaks on the grill for dinner.  All-in-all, a delicious, if not extremely healthy day.

However, I didn't go over my daily caloric intake budget, but even if I did, I would be okay with it as I think you have to let yourself indulge occasionally.  Putting yourself on bread and water alone will only make you desire something different all that much more.

So, that is what we did today.  We ate great food, had some drinks, and enjoyed the day.  No guilt in that, and I recommend it for all of you on a somewhat regular basis.

Tomorrow should be interesting too...  I will be staying in the city with some coworkers for a trade show, we have a ball game to go to tomorrow, and I seriously doubt healthy choices will be on the menu.  I will try though.

Good night, and good chow to all...

The Smoothie

Making smoothies was always kind of a pain in the ass, I thought.  Having the fresh fruit on-hand, putting it all together, blending, etc.  Granted, I was probably making it more of a production than I needed to, but still.

Then, last night, I had a hankering for a milkshake.  Not a smoothie, but an evil Culver's concrete mixer with Heath Bar (tm) mixed in.  To quell this craving, I decided to build a smoothie with some of the yogurt I had in the fridge and fruit we had...  Problem, we didn't have smoothie-appropriate fruit.

Then I remembered I had purchased some freeze-dried cans of fruit to try out from Honeyville Grain.  So, I  put some freeze-dried strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and pineapple with a bit of water, a single-serve container of organic yogurt (low fat), a few ounces of OJ and a handful of ice in the hand blender cup...  then blend.

To use modern terminology...  OMG!

So, I added up the calories and it was in the neighborhood of 350 for around 16 oz of smoothie.   Quite a few less than the milkshake (which comes in at over 1,100 calories in the same volume).  Plus the use of the freeze-dried fruit totally took the pain in the ass factor out of it.

On a side note, the freeze-dried fruit is pretty nice as a snack...

Vegetarian Shawarma (a.k.a. - The Curse of the Mujahideen)

Back in the day, when I was deployed in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, we would get these fantastic creations form street vendors, which were called Shawarma.  Let me tell you, after eating MREs for several weeks straight, you would eat almost anything that didn't come out of a brown plastic envelope.

Anyway, we called these things "Haji-Dogs" (yeah, I know, not very PC), since they were sold out of carts like hot dog vendors here use, and we loved them.

Fast forward to today.  I have done something which many would consider diabolical, or perhaps sacrilegious...  Nay, they might actually call it evil and declare a jihad on me for even having the thought of...  A vegetarian Shawarma.

That's right, you heard me right.  What's even worse?  It tastes really good.  Although, I will recommend that you don't go for the day after leftovers, as the tofu's texture gets a bit mushy.  Other than that, these are really good.

In the recipe below, I have reduced the amount of Tahini used to 1/2 a cup, as I found the original sauce to be too...  Tahini-y.  If you want more and amp it back up to a full cup, you will be adding 95 calories per serving (if you do less than the full cup, well, do the math).

Anyway, comments appreciated, enjoy the food, don't get involved in a land war in Asia...

Make Your Own Pita Bread

Have you ever read the ingredients on the packages of mass-produced baked goods?  It's like you are reading the contents of the "L'il Mad Scientist" chemistry sets of our youth, totally creeps me out.  So, I decided to learn to bake my own bread.  It is really amazing how easy baking bread is, and how little it costs (time aside, but that isn't a lot either).

So, I needed some pitas for a diabolical recipe I created (to be posted later) and I had two choices, go buy some chemical-laden ones at the grocery store that are all rubbery and bland, or learn to make them on my own.  I opted for the latter.

These are plain pitas, you could dress them up by adding minced onion or garlic, or by adding in some herbs.  All would make for some tasty pita.

Pitas are, traditionally, made in brick ovens at very high heat.  Since we don't have brick ovens (I assume) we can come close with our regular oven at high heat, close to the flame source...  Enjoy.

Green Tofu Curry Recipe

This is a recipe I made the other night and I have been enjoying with cilantro rice for lunch the last couple of days.  I used store bought curry paste in this one, but I think I will make up my own curry paste the next time around.  I want to experiment with a couple variations on the pastes though.

All-in-all, this is a tasty meal.  Not too spicy, the tofu holds a good texture and, if you would like, you could throw in some other kinds of veggies too.  As always, comments and variations welcome.

So easy to slip...

Business travel has a serious impact on my attempts to change my lifestyle as it pertains to eating well and exercising.  Long days of meetings, documents to get done, airport food, lots of time sitting, no time to get in some exercise, lack of sleep, sitting in an airplane breathing recycled air...

Then, you get home and you have to re-establish habits, or try to.  It is all such a pain in the foot.  Due to business travel and needing to stay home over the weekend with the little one, it has been 6 days since I have gotten onto the trail, and my diet hasn't been the greatest.  I am hoping to restart everything tomorrow.  Planning would probably be a better word...

Kra Prow Taohu (Thai marinated tofu with chiles and basil)

I made this dish up tonight based on a Kra Prow Gai (chicken with chilis and basil) recipe I had made before.  It is very tasty and the entire dish comes in at around 840 calories and will do two larger portions or three light portions easily.

Serves:   2 - 3
Total Time:  40 minutes

Ingredients:

Marinade - 
    1/2 cup Fish Sauce
    1/2 cup rice wine or dry sherry
    1/4 cup brown sugar
    Splash of rice vinegar
    Juice of 1/2 lime
    1 Tbsp chili paste (I use Sriracha)
    1 Tbsp finely minced lemon grass

Main Dish -
    1 14 - 16 oz package of extra firm tofu
    1 1/2 cups dry jasmine rice
    3 tablespoons oil (peanut oil if you have it)
    6 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
    1 medium onion, quartered and cut into 1/4" slices
    1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
    8 fresh thai chilis (please wear rubber gloves when preparing), stems removed, chopped and
       pounded into a paste
    2 tsp Tamari soy sauce
    a good pile of fresh thai basil (or any fresh basil), I usually have about 30 leaves
    dash of fish sauce (to taste)
    dash of freshly ground black or white pepper

NOTE:  If using a rice cooker, begin cooking the rice between steps 4 and 5.  If cooking traditionally, start boiling your water before prepping the tofu and add the rice between steps 4 and 5.

1)  Drain the tofu and slice into 1/2" slices.  Place the slices between paper towels or kitchen towels (not terrycloth) and gently press the water out of the slices without smashing them.
2)  Using a non-stick skillet, or a well seasoned cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, dry fry the tofu until browned on both sides, being sure to press more of the water out of the tofu with a spatula.
3)  Remove the tofu form the pan and place on a cutting board.
4)  Mix all of the ingredients of the marinade in a medium bowl and whisk together until well mixed.
5)  Cut the tofu into 1/2" cubes and place in the marinade stirring to coat and stirring every few minutes while remaining ingredients are prepped.
6)  While tofu is marinating (15 minutes or so), prepare the garlic, onion, red pepper, chilis and remove the stems from the basil.  Keep all items separate, but easily accessible.
7)  Using a slotted spoon, remove the tofu from the marinade and place in a bowl, reserve the marinade.
8)  In a wok, or a large skillet over medium heat, heat up the oil.
9)  When oil is hot, stir fry the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
10)  Toss in the onions and flip constantly until they are starting to soften, about 4 minutes or so.
11)  Throw in the red pepper and stir fry for 2 - 3 minutes
12)  Add the Tofu and stir fry for approximately 3 - 4 additional minutes.
13)  If the dish is too dry, pour in some of the reserved marinade.
14)  Add the chilis and the Tamari, stir fry for approximately 30 seconds, mixing well
15)  Add the Basil leaves and add fish sauce to taste, stir fry until basil is wilted and all ingredients are heated through.
16)  Add fresh ground black or white pepper to taste and serve over jasmine rice.

Nigh-Vegetarianism

That's right, I am a Nigh-Vegetarian, I admit it, go ahead and ostracize me!  What do you mean you don't know what the hell I am talking about?

Well, Nigh-Vegetarianism is my own little creation (I am sure it isn't original).  I basically decided that I was tired of eating like shit and eating so much meat, so I moved to more of a vegetable-based diet, with some meat in moderation.  This allows me to continue to eat tasty cuts of beef (although I am going to try for grass-fed or wild game mostly) while still staying healthy.

Therefore, I am on a journey of discovery around things like tofu and quinoa for providing protein in my diet, while also experimenting with new recipes and cooking techniques to allow me to prepare the veggie-based meals in a manner consistent with my tastes and preferences.

It's kinda fun, and the food is pretty damn good.

So, give it a try.  Be a wishy-washy nigh-vegetarian like me :-)

Brutal Days and Decompression

This was a long day.  Conference calls all day about a project at work that is high-profile and high-pressure.  Your butt glued to the office chair, not getting up to eat, generally a bad situation.

So, in my new perspective on importance and having time for things, I decided that I needed to make time to get in a couple walk/runs today for me and the mutt, if I didn't, it wasn't going to help the process at work at all.  So, I found time to get them in, and I am much happier for it.

I am planning on actually blocking out time in my work calendars for the walks, or some form of exercise.  In the past, I might have felt guilty for this, but it actually gives me some time to clear my head and think about what I am doing, instead of getting frustrated, sitting at my desk.  If you aren't sure it's okay, just ask your manager, my guess is they will be cool.  Unless your manager is a jerk, then just put something like, "TPS Report review" in the time slots and lie to them about it :-)

I should point out that my manger is cool and obviously, he is a handsome and powerful man...

It's not easy being healthy on the road...

Business travel sucks, there are no two ways about it.  Jammed into planes with a couple hundred infection vectors in a closed environment, not enough exercise, limited control over what food you get and the added stress of meetings and deadlines.  It doesn't make for an easy life.

However, you can be somewhat healthy, if not completely.  Walk the 13 blocks to your meeting instead of grabbing a cab.  Go to the salad bar in the grocery store instead of grabbing a sandwich at the pizza place next door, stuff like that.  So, while I didn't eat as well as I do at home, I was able to stay within my calorie limits over the last 2 days in New York, and have some really good Brazilian food while I was at it :-).

What I didn't get to do, however, was hit the treadmill at the hotel.  My exercise all came from walking around the city.

Also, I need a new "2 Day" business travel packing list.  I am wholly displeased with my travel minimalist performance on this trip.

The Bane of My Existence...

I have a horrible sweet tooth.  The best way I have heard it described was by some guest on Bill Maher's show who said sugar was like their crack cocaine.  I know exactly how they feel.  So, I am trying to quit it like I quit smoking.  I simply have decided that I am tired of being defined by what I eat, much as I was tired of being defined by cigarettes.

Therefore, I am pretty much have eliminated things like candy, cookies, soda and the like.  However, I still get cravings and it is not easy late at night when your kid leaves a basket full of Hershey's Kisses on the counter.  So, I have discovered a new savior (for tonight, at least)...

Fresh Pineapple.  Super-sweet, juicy and only ~80 calories per cup.  Gotta love that fruit and its fructose :-)

Of course, I don't want to mainline fruit either.  While the simple sugars in fruit are pretty easily metabolized, too much of anything isn't good.  So while it is certainly better than a big bowl of ice cream, everything in moderation...

For tonight, however, the pineapple will be a huge help.

On Bathroom Scales and Trust

I woke up this morning and proceeded through the traditional morning rituals.  Reggie was a little slower coming out of this crate this morning as I think we wore him out yesterday.  Anyway, I decided to step on the scale to see the differential between just before I went to sleep and just after I woke up.

Oh my...

According to my high-tech digital weight measurement system (calling it a scale is so pedestrian), I lost 12 lbs overnight and 16 lbs in the past week.

I don't think I trust the scale.  However, if we consider water weight (I am staying hydrated now, so less hoarding by the body) I guess it might be accurate.  However, I think this illustrates why weighing yourself daily isn't a good idea.  Your weight fluctuates, so it could either give you a false sense of accomplishment (like today), or crush your spirit by telling you that you gained a couple pounds.

Weigh yourself once a week, or every 3 or 4 days.  Do it at the same time (in my case, first thing in the morning) and wearing the same amount of clothing.  Also, don't be a slave to the actual pounds lost (or gained, muscle weighs more than fat), instead, use the scale as just another data point in your suite of body composition self-analysis tools.  Consider that if you are working out and eating better, you will be building muscle and losing fat in concert with each other.  So the scale can tell you overall trending on weight loss, but you should also look at your body fat percentage, see how your clothes fit and assess how you actually feel.  Pay attention to your body and note where you are firming up or developing muscle tone.

Undoing years of neglect takes time, but you will notice the nuanced changes.  I know I am.

Oh yeah, and don't trust the scale (it hasn't earned the title of "digital weight measurement system" yet).

Damn good pasta

So, I was watching Anthony Bourdain's show the other night and he had a series of guest chefs show the proper way to make some common foods. One of them was a proper red sauce for pasta. Working what I saw on the show, I made it last night and it was absolutely fantastic. I thought I would share it:

Makes ~4 servings

2 1/2 lbs tomatoes

1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil, divided

Sea Salt

10 cloves garlic, peeled

Crushed red pepper

Fresh Basil

1 lb fresh pasta

1 tbl salted butter

- Blanche tomatoes and remove skin

- Squeeze out seeds and juice into a bowl and reserve (in case the sauce is dry)

- In a stockt pot, heat up about 1/2 a cup of olive oil and put in the tomatoes and a healthy dash of sea salt

- Break up the tomatoes with a potato masher and mix with the oil

- Simmer for ~40 minutes

- When there is ~15 minutes left on the tomatoes, mix a cup of olive oil with 10 cloves garlic, a dash of crushed red pepper and a few basil leaves in a small saucepan and infuse over low heat.

- While oil is infusing, bring water to boil for pasta (if using dry pasta, you will want it al-dente for a later step, so adjust timing)

- Strain infused oil into tomatoes and mix well over med-low heat for ~5 minutes

- Remove tomatoes from heat

- Chop up enough fresh basil for about 1 cup, or to taste

- In a large skillet put about 10 or 12 oz of the sauce mixture over med-high heat to reduce

- Put half the fresh pasta into the boiling water for about 3 minutes

- Transfer the pasta to the skillet with the sauce, add around 1/2 a tablespoon of butter, some fresh chopped basil and a pinch of crushed red pepper

- aerate the pasta and sauce (flip it in the pan) to complete the pasta cooking and to work in the flavors of the basil, pepper and butter.

- repeat the process for the other half of the pasta

- serve immediately

All told, this took about an hour with prep and cooking. You could do the sauce components earlier or the night before, then just warm it up prior to the skillet/pasta steps. That would make this a good weeknight meal.

As for the fresh pasta, I used the stuff you can get in the cooler at the grocery store. I want to make my own pasta, but I am not there yet. Even with the pseudo-fresh stuff, this was an incredibly light and flavorful meal which blew away any pasta sauce I have gotten in a jar. The basil and garlic totally complemented each other and brightened it up. This one gets two forks up.