Day 30 - Steak? Mushrooms?

My son and hubby went snow camping this weekend and left me and mom at home (alone). I discovered some Portabello Mushrooms in the fridge that hubby brought home. Lucious mushroom caps stuffed with herbs and spices, cheese, and red bell pepper.

Which was very exciting.

And I was about to be put to my first real meat test. Steak. Its my favorite meat. Ever. And my mom, who is NOT a vegetarian, decided that she was going to cook herself a steak for dinner. With a baked potato. Which she did, and it smelled really good.

BUT...

I cooked up those mushrooms and a baked potato. And I didn't even miss the steak. That mushroom was sooooo good and really hit any meat craving that might have been activated by the smell (although, my mouth didn't even water and I had no desire for the steak--go figure!). Really, the mushroom was that good. And there were two, so one is now in Tupperware in the fridge for someone's lunch.

And tomorrow I'm going to Whole Foods. Kinda excited!

Day 30 - Weigh In

185.00

Woohoo!

Day 27 - I'm Too Tired to Really Cook Enchiladas

This isn't what we had for dinner last night (well, one of us did). We had leftovers. We had lots of Mac N Cheese N Cauliflower leftover as well as lots of that Awesome Mushroom Pasta. I did make this earlier in the week, but it is almost so easy that you don't really need a recipe.

But I will give you one anyway.

And before you tell me how unhealthy frozen burritos are, I already know. But that doesn't mean I don't still have them in my freezer. I do--it fills in when I haven't had enough energy to make my own (which I do like to do, and I will share my recipe for that the next time I make them, I promise).

Too Tired to Really Cook Enchiladas

• 1 pkg of 8-10 bean burritos
• 1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce (red or green--I prefer green, but I actually made this one with the red)
• 1 (8 oz) pkg shredded cheese of your choice (I used a four-cheese Mexican blend)
• 1 large can refried beans

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Spread refried beans in the bottom of a 9x13-inch pan. 
2. Place frozen burritos over beans. Cover with enchilada sauce.
3. Sprinkle cheese over enchilada sauce.
4. Cook in oven 45-60 minutes (or until burritos are heated through). Voilà!

Sorry ! No picture. That's how tired I really was...

Day 28 - Weigh In

188.2

And I am happy about it. Because this seems to be my high now. :)

Day 27 - Mostly Green Curry Veggies with Tofu (and chicken on the side if you are a meat eater)

Tofu on the left, chicken on the right

What you may gather from that very long title is that not everyone in my household is a vegetarian. I was reminded by my mom the other day that she didn't choose to become a vegetarian, and she lives here too. And to be honest, I do try to keep lunch meat and such in the house for her, but I don't really want to make a separate meal for her every time I cook. And I learned that from her--growing up it was always "eat what's on your plate or don't eat at all, but I'm not cooking anything else."

But I did cook chicken after I cooked the tofu. It wasn't hard, especially since I was already cutting up chicken for the dogs (yeah, I feed my dogs real food--none of that preformed kibble for my sweeties). This recipe is mostly Rachael Ray, but I've added some important (to me) tips and changes...Oh, and the rice is from my friend Rachel. Her version of coconut rice is THE BOMB, and you should try it. Trust me...

Mostly Green Curry Veggies with Tofu over Coconut Rice

Coconut Rice (first)

• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 cup long grain rice
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1 cup coconut milk
• salt and pepper to tast

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large, ovenproof saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until just transparent (about 5 minutes).
2. Add the rice and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute. Add veggie stock and coconut milk, bring to a simmer, and add salt and pepper.
3. Cover the pan tightly. Place in oven and bake for about 18 minutes. The liquid should be absorbed and the rice cooked thoroughly but not mushy.

Mostly Green Curry Veggies with Tofu

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
  
• 1 1/4 cup vegetable stock
• 1 (13.5 oz) can coconut milk
• 1 (14 oz) container firm tofu, cut into 1-inch pieces and patted dry
  
• 1 green bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, pressed
• 3-inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped (break out that Pampered Chef food chopper!)
  
• 1 head of broccoli, cut into small florets. Don't forget to add the stem.
• zest and juice of 1 lime*
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
• 4 green onions, sliced
• 1/2 cup italian parsley, chopped
• 1/2 (16 oz) bag frozen peas

1. While the coconut rice is cooking, preheat a large, non-stick skillet over high heat with 2 tbsp of the vegetable oil. Add the tofu and brown thoroughly. Remove to a plate. 
2. Add the remaining tbsp of oil to the pan. Add the peppers, onions, garlic, ginger, and broccoli to the pan. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3-6 minutes, or until broccoli starts to turn bright green.
3. Add coconut milk to the pan. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Return tofu to pan and simmer for an additional 2 minutes.
4. Add lime juice, lime zest, cilantro, parsley, and peas. Stir to combine and simmer until peas are heated through. Remove from heat and add green onions. 
5. Serve over yummy Coconut Rice. Die from sheer veggie pleasure.

My tofu stuck to my non-stick pan, but it was still surprisingly tasty.

*Using a citrus press will give you lots of lovely lime juice. This is a tool that is totally worth the moola$$ you spend on it. A microplane makes quick work of zesting said lime.

This is the exact citrus press I have. You can purchase it from

Pampered Chef. If you click on the picture it will take you to

Pampered Chef's online catalog.