A Veggie Sandwich to Make Hardcore Carnivores Convert

When I first became a vegetarian (way back before it was cool), I had a really hard time finding animal-friendly lunches (especially sandwiches). Dinner was easy because I could cook anything I wanted. But, lunch…lunch had to packable and, preferably, not something that needed to be served hot. (I was never the kind of person who could eat lukewarm spaghetti).

Everything changed the day I discovered hummus. It was exactly what I had asked for and more. Not only was it low calorie enough that I didn’t have to measure every teaspoon as with peanut butter, but it tasted good with everything. And I do mean everything (including things like cheese, that peanut butter couldn’t even touch).

I know I’ve written extensively about my love for hummus, but I simply cannot help doing it again. Yes, peanut butter was my first great love, but I have long since divorced it’s nutty goodness in favor of hummus’ tangy charm that pairs nicely with sweets and sours and savories all at once.

I feel I should stop now and just get on with the recipe. For fear I may remove the hummus from its resting place in my fridge and, lick by lick, devour the whole container.

You can even toast the wrap and do it as a pizza!

Broccoli, Hummus and Cheddar Cheese–in a Wrap
serves 1

• Tortilla, wrap, bread, etc of choice
• Hummus (try my homemade recipe here)
• Chopped broccoli, steamed, baked or stir-fried
• Fat-free (or regular) cheddar cheese, shredded

→Lay the wrap on a flat surface.

Spread hummus on top.

Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top.

Dump the broccoli on. I like lots of broccoli so my sandwich is always overflowing.

See how I tried to make that seem as hard as a real recipe?

 

The Adventure Continues: Sprouted Wheat Finds it’s Soulmate in the Pistachio

Truly a match made in heaven

All philosophical musings and deep words have been pried out of me by this miserable excuse of a day. So, in an effort to keep this blog from becoming a complete vehicle for my pointless rants, I’m going to try to avoid saying too much. I think I’ve already said too much.

I don’t know if you remember the pistachio butter I made awhile back or that I said it was insanely strong. I did though and it was. I am happy to report I have found a most perfect of uses for it. Green sprouted wheat berries. Opposites attract and these two are certainly opposites in flavor; but, don’t forget, birds of feather flock together–for that we have the intensity of said flavor.

It’s a match made in heaven.

Opposite, yet alike-the definition of perfect

 

Curried Lentil Loaf with Chatpata Butternut Sabzi

It’s been so long since I’ve written. I wish I could say it’s because I haven’t felt much like cooking; because I haven’t been able to find the words; because I’m lost in other (more fascinating) endeavors. If only that were the case.

If only…

I actually made this loaf awhile ago but its posting has been overcome by the myriad of cookie recipes I am so in love with. In some sense, I am glad I waited for this particular recipe takes the contradictions I hate about myself and makes it delicious. The comforting heaviness of the lentils, the plain-ness of the tomatoes, and the sweetness of the squash are all perfectly complimented by the bite of chat masala, the fire of garam masala and the wit of meyer lemon.

If only such qualities were appreciated in a person as well as in a food.

Indian-Spiced Lentil Loaf
makes 1 loaf

• 3/4 c. mashed Fiber One Original Bran (mash it till it has the consistency of breadcrumbs)
• 1/4 c. toasted wheat germ (or bran, if you prefer)
• 2 c. cooked lentils
• 1/4 c. egg or egg substitute
• 1-15 oz. can of tomato sauce
• 2 T. light butter, melted
• spoonful of minced (or chopped) garlic
• handful of frozen chopped onion (or fresh, doesn’t matter)
• a few pinches of the following: turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder, cinnamon
• a small pinch or two garam masala
• salt and pepper to taste

→Preheat the oven to 350*F. Grease a standard loaf pan.

Mash the lentils with a spoon. You can puree them if you want but I decided to leave some chunks. Mix in the fiber one, wheat germ and egg. Add the tomatoes. (See note for a vegan option)

Saute the onion and garlic in some cooking spray until they are fragrant and onion is lightly browned. Add to the lentil mix.

Add in spices and mix well. At this point, mine looked something like this:

Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, checking with a toothpick for doneness. This loaf comes out a little wet at first but, after a day in the fridge, it REALLY firms up to normal meatloaf consistency.

NOTE: For a vegan twist, leave out the butter (or swap it with any mild-flavored oil) and swap the eggs with 3T. lentils + 2t. baking powder + a little water.

Sweet, Sour and Spicy Butternut Squash Sabzi
makes as much as you want

• Butternut squash (I used the bag I had left from the freezer clean-out)
• 1 small tomato, chopped
• 1/2 bag frozen 3 pepper and onion blend
• a teaspoonful of minced/chopped/mashed garlic
• 1/2 teaspoonful grated ginger
• 1-3 packets sugar or sugar substitute
• Juice of 1-1.5 meyer lemons
• a few good pinches of the following: turmeric, garam masala
• a small pinch or two of: cumin and cinnamon
• 1-2 palmfuls (or large pinches) chat masala, which lends this sabzi its tangy punch
• salt and pepper to taste

→Saute the frozen pepper and onion blend, garlic and ginger in some cooking spray. You can do it in the same pot you mixed the lentil loaf in.

Add butternut squash, tomato and spices. Stir well.

Cook until squash is soft, stirring continuously (or almost continuously). Mash the squash till it’s almost a paste.

Cover and leave on low-medium heat so the sabzi can absorb the spices. Keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t burn. It should take about 10 minutes for the spices to meld together.

Serve with loaf.

If you’re careful, you can do the entire thing using only one pot. You’ll have to use a few bowls/other dishes to hold the lentil mix while you’re sauteing, etc but it’ll still only be one pot.

A REAL Veggie Wrap

I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I really don’t. I wish I did, but I don’t. Because, if I did, I wouldn’t be here, in my apartment, writing a blog entry when I’m supposed to be in class. Did I go to class? Obviously, I didn’t.

Now the real question, then, is WHY I didn’t go to my classes yesterday or today. Am I dead? No. Do I have the flu? No, although that’s surprising. Am I depressed? Yes, but no more so than normal (or so I think).

How about I just skip to the point and tell all you lovely readers out there just DYING to know why I’ve skipped class. My back hurts. That’s it. Plain and simple. No fuzz. Usually, I have a pretty high tolerance for pain. While everyone else dreads shots, I think the whole thing is kind of….fun. But that’s not the point. The point here IS that my back hurts and, when my back hurts, I can’t move because my legs won’t support my weight without causing me such excruciating pain that my eyes start watering.

Usually, I would just take a pill. Take 7-8 extra strength advil and them do their magic. But this pain is different. You see, this pain is really nothing more than a physical manifestation of a psychological problem, i.e. psychosomatic. I won’t listen to my mind, so, now, I have to lie in bed as retribution or something until I either figure out what triggered it or whatever did trigger it becomes less….problematic for my subconscious.

What I would like to know now is why they can’t just remove half of my brain and get on with it. Wouldn’t life be so much easier without an id? God knows mine would.

Anyway, I’m sure that annoying rant has made you you a little tired. But, wait! Before you walk (or click) away to find something else to do, check out this great wrap recipe and see if it doesn’t change your mind.

This is one of my favorites. Made it up completely out of the blue last year when I had some leftover vegetables and hummus. Sure, I’ve modified it a bit to suit my mood and fridge contents over the year, but it’s still just as veggie-licious.

I didn't dare cut this one in half!

Who needs a taco when you have…

• Tortilla, wrap, bread, etc of choice
• Hummus (try my homemade recipe here)
• Sliced eggplant and zucchini
• Frozen 3 pepper and onion blend (or sliced red, orange, yellow and green bell peppers and onions)
• Sliced mushrooms (portabella or baby bella have the best flavor)
• Tomato (sliced)
• Alfalfa sprouts

→First of all, remember that any and all of these ingredients are optional. This isn’t baking here, we’re not doing chemistry, just taste bud chemistry.
Spread hummus on vector of choice (I used a flax wrap).
Grill all fresh veggies (for me, this was the eggplant, zucchini and mushrooms but you might choose to use fresh peppers and onions as well). Note: Roasting the veggies in an oven will work too.
In a medium pan, saute any frozen veggies (if applicable).
Assemble sandwich by layering the veggies on top (eggplant, then zucchini, then tomatoes, then mushrooms and peppers and onions, and finally sprouts).
Eat carefully, it drips!

Zen #2: Nut Butter

A perfect Nutella!

Nutella

Chocolate Almond-Hazelnut Spread

• flaxseeds (about 2T)
• 4-5 splenda, or 4-5t of brown sugar/white sugar
• 1/2 scoop Vanilla WHEY protein powder (make sure it doesn’t act as a THICKENER, i.e. make liquids into a shake)
• a small spoonful or two cocoa powder
• a handful (about 1/4c.) of wheat bran (you can toast it first if you want but I wasn’t about to toast anything after I got done with the hazelnuts)
• 1 3/4c. Emerald Cocoa Roasted Almonds
• a handful (about 15-30) of ROASTED hazelnuts

→It’s really simple. Put the ingredients into a food processor container or very high-quality blender (I have a vita-mix) in the order listed and whiz away! SO much better than the store bought Nutella which is 99% sugar.

Uh-oh…I think the melatonin I took is starting to kick in. I’ll have to do the stir-fry later.

Another Sandwich Featuring “Grass”

Since I just recently started to get used to the 8-11 hour days (as opposed to the 3 hour days of classes that I didn’t go to half the time), I decided it might be a good idea to take a sandwich to work instead of the endless slew of protein bars. After all, depending on what you have in your fridge, it’s not all that hard to make a sandwich that has a fewer number of calories (okay, fine, the same) than the 100-150 calorie protein bar. Plus you can always toss a serving of vegetables in there. Yes, a sandwich will do just fine today, I thought to myself.

So I proceeded to make myself the first sandwich that came to mind: 2 slices of 35 calorie bread, a couple slices of veggie ham or turkey or something, a slice of fat free cheese and some alfalfa sprouts (my favorite ingredient). I put the sandwich in a little container and drove off to work. Unfortunately, my coworker didn’t agree on the culinary appeal of sprouts so, as I took a bite, she yelled out, “Are you eating GRASS?”
To which I could only burst out laughing.

Another Boot’s Rip-off Serves 1
1. hummus (I use about a quarter cup of Basha’s Lemon Lovers)
2. shredded carrots (shred them yourself or buy matchstick carrots from meijer)
3. arugula (or my favorite cheap standby: spinach + black pepper)
4. sprouts (alfalfa for me, as always)
5. bread or wrap (I like to use low calorie flat outs or damascus flax roll ups)
→bread, hummus, carrots, arugula, sprouts. roll it up

Almost Boot’s Sandwich

When I was at Cambridge this past summer for a few months, I (very foolishly) thought it would be a good idea not to get a meal plan. I figured there would be a microwave or something and I really didn’t need all the unhealthy “dorm food”.

To my dismay, I discovered upon arrival that all I had was a fridge and a measly one at that so I would have to find somewhere to get breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day…not to mention the whole no cooked foods thing. It is through this necessity that I discovered the glorious, wonderfully healthy deliciousness that is the sandwich of the pharmacy Boot’s. Yes, in England, amid the pills and shampoos are fresh sandwiches, salads, and dips all with calorie labels to boot (not to mention the price wasn’t too bad either). I was in sandwich heaven…sort of.

Now, before this, I had never been much of a sandwich fan. Probably because, when I thought of sandwich, I thought of the sandwiches they served on bus rides-the ones with a slice of just barely edible processed cheese stuck between two slices of day old white bread-not healthy by any stretch of imagination and not really very appetizing either.

These sandwiches were different. They had hummus in them (my second love, after peanut butter, of course). How bad could they be?

Let’s just say, after that first day at Boot’s, I’ve eaten at least one sandwich every day…in fact, if I don’t, I go into sandwich withdrawal (and, believe me, it’s not pretty).

Cheesy Hummus Sandwich/Wrap
1. cream cheese (use light or fat free)
2. hummus (I like the “Basha” brand but find one that’s suited to your tastes)
3. cheddar cheese (once again, light or fat free)
4. cucumbers
5. tomatoes
6. red onions
7. sprouts (alfalfa are my favorite)
→ I usually use 2T of the cream cheese and hummus and an ounce of cheddar, then add the other stuff and wrap it up in a low carb wrap.

Admittedly, a little ingredient heavy for a sandwich, but well worth it.