What's in your pantry?

There was this great article the July/August issue of our Experience Life magazine suggesting items that you should keep stocked in your pantry, titled "The Healthy Pantry".  These are great go-to items and with the exception of group #2, it's an awesome way to stock your plant-based pantry too!

Lentil-stuffed Portobellos

I got the idea to make some stuffed portobellos - they turned out quite delicious, if I do say so myself!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups of green lentils
• 1 cup cooked chestnuts, chopped
• 3 cups of water
• 1 tbs herbs de Provence
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled, chopped and divided
• 6 portobello mushroom caps (try to find some that are more bowl shaped and better for stuffing
• Olive oil
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 1 large vidalia onion, diced
• Salt to Taste

Directions:

1. Rinse your lentils and put them in a saucepan with the water.  Add the herbs de Provence and half of the garlic (do not add salt while lentils are cooking as it can toughen them).  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 20-30 minutes.  You may need to add additional water - just add enough to cover the lentils.
2. Sample the lentils to be sure they're cooked to your satisfaction and remove from heat.  Drain any remaining liquid. Add the chopped chestnuts and set aside.  I make the lentils a day or two in advance.
3. Wash the portobellos and remove the stem (you can cut up the stem and use it in the next step).  Place the mushrooms in a large saute pan with 1/4 cup of water over medium heat (you are basically steaming them).  Cook them for covered 3-4 minutes each side.  Keep an eye on them - you may need to add additional water.  Once completely cooked, transfer them to a serving plate.
4. Add 1 tbs. olive oil to a saute pan, when the oil is hot, add the onions, celery and mushroom stems.  Saute until the onions are translucent, then add the remaining garlic.  Once the garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes, add the lentils to the saute pan.  Salt as desired.  Once mixture is heated through, remove from heat. 
5. Pack the mixture in a large ice cream scoop or measuring cup and stuff each of the mushrooms with the mixture.  Garnish with rosemary if desired and serve.

Serves: 2 - 4 (depending on whether this is your main course)  We served very large mushroom caps on a bed of baby spinach and it was enough for one person.  

I'm on Facebook!

I finally created a page for Plant-Based Happiness on Facebook! 

I'll be slowly adding my photos, recipes, articles, etc. to Facebook, so please login and like my page.

 Click here to access my Facebook page

 

I've had a page on my personal Pinterest for a while, you can access it and follow me here:

http://pinterest.com/jennyjellybean/plant-based-diet-happiness/

Vegan Girl Scout Samoa Wannabes

I've been trying some Paleo dessert recipes lately, most of them also happen to be Vegan or easily Veganizable!

 
The awesome thing about these raw/no bake dessert recipes is they are SUPER quick and they make small batches.  So, they're ready in a jiffy and you there's no pressure to over-indulge since they make only 6 - 12 tasty treats per recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup pecans, plus 8 extra whole pecans
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut, plus some additional for rolling
• 1 cup of pitted dates, about 12
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1/3 cup Vegan dark chocolate chunks (available at Whole Foods)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Add pecans to the food processor and process until they are fine but not clumping.
2. Add remaining ingredients in order above.
3. Roll into 8 balls.  Roll in shredded coconut and press one pecan into the center of each ball.

In the event the balls don't stay together well, you can add a tablespoon of coconut oil to the mix.

Enjoy!

Are you kidding me?

I saw this cookbook recently in a store in Chapel Hill.  What are your initial thoughts when you look at the photo below?

Vegan Apple Pie Protein Shake

I've been experimenting with lots of different smoothies/shakes lately since I've been exercising a lot and I came across a recipe for an Apple Pie shake on the Vega website.



Vega One is more than just a plant-based protein powder, it's got fiber, probiotics, 50% of your RDA vitamins/minerals, Omega-3's, greens, antioxidants, etc.  I usually just combine a scoop with unsweetened almond milk but lately I've gotten more adventurous.

Weight Loss Progress Update - Week 5

I weighed in Thursday morning at 135.8 lb. and 23% body fat. That's 1.3 lbs. lost since last week and 5 pounds lost since I started this challenge on May 2! I've also hit another milestone with this weight, I'm exactly 20 pounds lighter than I was in July 2012!!!!

I'm very happy with my progress over the past week.

 Only 9 days left to meet my goals!  

Plant-Based Summer Cookout Menu Ideas

We grilled out for Memorial Day with the family and it was a huge success!  Here's what we had on the menu:

Weight Loss Progress Update - Week 4

Weekly status update: I've lost .7 lbs. and .8% body fat since my weigh-in last week and 3.3 lbs. since I started this challenge on 5/2/13.

So, I'm down to 137.1 lbs and 22.2% body fat. I've almost met my body fat goal of 22% but I'm still 12 lbs from my goal weight. I'm 14 days from my goal date (i.e. my 32nd birthday).

Delicious Vegan Strawberry Pie Recipe

Josh & I went strawberry picking a couple weeks ago and I made him these miniature strawberry pies.

 

They turned out really delicious.  I veganized this recipe and also made my own graham cracker crust using Organic Graham Crackers.  I was horrified after inspecting the labels on the pre-made graham cracker crusts and the pre-packaged graham cracker crumbs.  All of the leading brand graham cracker crusts and crumbs contained multiple hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup = transfatty, GMO yuckiness!

Mother's Day Cookout & Some Great Veggie Burgers

We grilled out with the family this Mother's Day and had a delicious plant based meal!

We found some really good pre-made veggie burgers to bring with us to Summer cookouts.  They're Hilary's Adzuki Bean Burgers.  We discovered them in the Freezer section at Whole Foods a while back and we really like them.  They have a little bit of a cumin flavor and go really well with guacamole, lettuce and tomato, served on a bun or just eaten the way they are!  

They taste really good, they stay together on the grill and are free of a lot of common allergens. They're Vegan and gluten-free, dairy free, non-GMO, corn free, soy free, etc.  Get yourself a pack and let me know what you think!

http://www.hilaryseatwell.com/products/adzuki-bean-burger

Heavenly Tropical Fruit Salad

I've been trying to cut back on snacking on dark chocolate and other sweets that may be hiding in the pantry, so I made a nice big bowl of fruit.  It turned out so pretty that I couldn't resist posting a photo.

YUM!  This salad made a great little after dinner treat.  I cut up half of a cantaloupe, some fresh local strawberries (hand picked by yours truly), a mango and a kiwi.  Everything was ripe and so sweet - it was the perfect healthy dessert!

Weight Loss Progress Update - Week 3

I've lost 2 pounds and .4% body fat since last week!  

My 6 week Fitness & Weight Loss Challenge!

On May 2nd, my fabulous trainer challenged me to set some goals (I've got goals!) but then she asked me to set a date that I planned to achieve those goals by. Yikes! How intimidating?  What was at stake? Three weeks of free training if I could do it. 

Stats as of 5/2/13:

Weight: 140.4 lbs.; Percentage Body Fat: 24.1% (I've been "stuck" at this weight since March after losing 17 pounds.)

Goals:
- Weigh 125 lbs.
- Percent Body Fat: At most 22%
- Feel good in a bikini this Summer

In order to reach my goals, I plan to do the following:
- Exercise 5-6 times per week (working out with V a couple times)
- Keep my calorie intake at 1200/day (even on the weekends - BIG CHALLENGE FOR ME)
- No sweets, no wine, no excuses! (I'm only allowed one latte a week!) :)

As of 5/15/13:
Weight: 139.8; PBF: 23.4% (I lost 1/2 a pound and .7% body fat)

Not much lost but it was a loss, so that's good.  This weekend should be easier because there won't be as many temptations as there were last weekend - we had a big family get together to celebrate Mother's Day, my Mom's birthday and my parents 41st Anniversary and there was a lot of good food present!  I'll be posting weekly updates on my success.