Lentil Experiment and Eat Your Produce

Thursday:

We started our morning the same way we have been for the last couple of weeks at the gym.

Here is a pic of Dan heading into the gym in the dark. I guess he was cold or I was walking slowly because I was taking pictures (or sleep walking) LOL. Since I stayed up late Wednesday night watching TV meaning I was tired in the morning and felt a little bit like I was sleep walking through my workout but I got it done. However it wasn’t at the intensity I would have liked but life it hardly perfect so I am okay with it. ;-)

While we were at the gym there was a beautiful red sunrise which I had to photograph. Even though I am still not a morning person (and may never be) I can appreciate the beauty of the sunrise.  ;-)

Once we got home I made smoothies with frozen banana, frozen wild blueberries, kale, cinnamon, ginger, ground flaxseed, and walnuts.

Dan got dinner leftovers (eggplant "meatballs") for lunch, an orange, 2 Brazil nuts and I made him a quick soup. The soup was cheating but I needed to add more calories to his lunch. I took a 15 oz can of Amy’s organic lentil soup and poured that into quart jar. I added a 15 oz can of organic tomatoes (no salt) to the jar and stirred to combine. Then I added Indian seasonings (turmeric, black pepper, black mustard seed, coriander, powdered ginger, cumin seed and crushed red pepper). While this isn’t the best answer since it is higher in sodium than I would like it works in a pinch (otherwise known as Alicia didn’t plan well). ;-)

For my lunch I just ate a little of this and that. I had an orange, 2 bananas, a large baked sweet potato topped with frozen spinach in vegan white sauce. I also had a few walnuts, 2 Brazil nuts and numerous mugs of hot green tea. Nothing too exciting ... just healthy food.

I read in Cucina Ebraica that soaked lentils cook in 15 minutes and had to try it before I forgot about it. I started by soaking one pound of lentils in 8 cups of water for 8 hours. Then I added all the remaining soup ingredients, including acidic tomatoes which could have been a problem but I wanted to know. From the time I turned on the stove it only took 25 minutes to have soup. I would say this was a successful experiment. I am not including the recipe because there are more than enough lentil soups out there. For those who are curious this one included onion, garlic, parsnip, celery, diced tomato, Italian seasoning and fennel seeds. Since the soup cooks such a short period of time I do recommend that you chop your veggies fairly small.

Fruits and Veg and Breast Cancer Recurrence:

I read this blurb and wanted to share it with all of you. I don’t think it is earth shattering news but it is yet another reason to eat your fruit and veggies. If produce reduces the risk of breast cancer recurrence I imagine the same applies to other hormonally linked cancers (prostate, ovarian, endometrial, and cervical, etc.). I don’t know about you but reading this made me feel better about concentrating on consuming as much produce as possible. ;-)

Vegan Mofo and my Reflections:

Now that Vegan Mofo has been over a few days I have had time to reflect on it. In retrospect I should have gone with my gut and not participated. The month of November was hectic here with too many appointments/obligations before Thanksgiving and the prepping for Christmas. I felt as though I wasn’t able to give Mofo proper attention. Whether I participate next year is up in the air.

As my blog has become more health conscious many long time vegan readers no longer comment which is fine. It is a little sad to me that more people don’t focus on their health but I also recognize we are all in the different place in that regard. I write the blog to share healthy recipes and articles about health with those that are interested. Clearly my food is still and will remain vegan but now it also has to be healthy not just vegan. I am bringing this up to explain where my head is now. If someone would ask me to describe my food philosophy I would say it is health conscious whole food plant-based and vegan.

Part of the reason I am writing this is because of the blogosphere uproar over a vegan blogger returning to meat for her health. Personally I think the entire idea is BS based on everything I have read about health and nutrition. It is just as easy to be an unhealthy vegan as it is to be an unhealthy omnivore. If you eat a lot of processed food, or food full of white flour, sugar and vegan margarine don’t be surprised if your health suffers. Processed food isn’t good for anyone’s health even if it is vegan.  Sad but true.

Friday:

Dan and I both like to shop, as you have probably guessed by now. However we also both like to purchase things on sale when possible.  Today ended up being a day of shopping. We found some great stuff at good prices.  :-)   I will fill you in tomorrow after we get back from the art show. There was also a little eating out. This has been the week of going out to eat for us. We need to focus more on eating at home. I think the eating out thing is getting a bit out of control.

Happy Thoughts:

Thursday and Friday were fairly productive which means I have a lot to be thankful for today. Here are my happy thoughts at the moment:

• We got to the gym a little after 6am Friday morning and I had burned over 600 calories before we left. It feels good to know I got my cardio in for the day well before 8am. Woo hoo!  Now I need to get my calorie burn up to 700 in the morning. Something tells me that will be a bit tougher. ;-)

• We are going to an art show on Saturday which we are both looking forward to. Dan and I like to buy art from local artists and the show we are going to tomorrow is one of our favorite artists. We have five of her works currently and I suspect by tomorrow we will have more. Italy is a favorite subject of hers so you can see why we would be drawn to her work.

• The two boys (Masi and Nicco) ran through the house a few minutes ago side by side. They are so adorable and still behave like kittens even though they are 9 years old. Those little fuzz balls have me wrapped around their little furry toes.  *swoon*

• Here is a picture of Masi last night on top of one of the bookcases. He had gotten a snowflake ornament from the staircase garland stuck in his tail. Only at my house, LOL.  Masi is fine, just annoyed at us because the ornament in his tail is clearly all our fault.  It can't be his fault he is a cat and they are never wrong.  ;-)

• I was very happy to spend the day with Dan and it isn’t even a weekend. Nothing like a long weekend with my baby to put a smile on my face.  I love you precious!  *smooch*

• Today at Marshall's I found three great men’s T-shirts to wear to the gym for $4, $5and $7. I also picked up another pair of workout pants for $10. I love a bargain. LOL

• A few more Christmas items managed to jump into my shopping cart. You know I need more right? LOL

Signing out:

I hope you are having a happy and healthy Friday. Talk to you again soon, most likely tomorrow evening after the art show.