2010 - Looking Back, Looking Forward

2010 was a hell of a year, and to be honest, I'm glad it's over.

I realise that New Years is an arbitrary date that doesn't really have any effect on its own, but I'm taking this week to reflect and to make some changes. I start a new job, and therefore a new, much less ridiculous schedule on January 4th, so that's my D-Day for Self-Improve 2011.

I did have some victories in 2010. Let's start there...

1. I lost 20 lbs. It was difficult and I'm not done yet, but I am extremely proud of what I accomplished, and I'm healthier and happier for it. I even had to buy all new pants!
2. I raised nearly $4500 for Save the Brains in Kevin's memory.
3. I continued sponsoring our foster child in Haiti despite some hairy financial times this year. Her year was infinitely worse than mine could ever be!
4. I got 99% on my Medical Terminology exam, the first exam I've written since 1997. I finished the course with a 96% overall.
5.Through my ongoing health and fertility issues this year I learned a lot about myself and what's important to me. It's been a very long time since I took the time for serious introspection, and being forced to was a blessing (although it's sometimes difficult to remember that).

The biggest thing that brought me down over this past year was a sense of powerlessness - over my health, my fertility, my marriage, my work life/schedule and my finances. This has to stop. I'm taking back the power, when ever and where ever I can. I've already changed my work situation for the better. Here are a few of the other things I hope to accomplish in 2011...

1. Lose 10 more pounds and stay at a healthy weight.
2. Exercise more regularly. Find an activity I like doing, other than yoga.
3. Raise at least $5000 for Save the Brains.
4. Get our finances under control. We won't be able to pay off all our debt this year, but we can come up with a plan and stick to it. This will alleviate an enormous amount of stress.
5. Take the time to paint and craft more, and sell some stuff. I'd really like to actually get a viable online business going by next fall.
6. Cook more. I got Great Chefs Cook Vegan from my brother and sister-in-law for Christmas, and I already have The Artful Vegan, so I plan on making some new fancy dishes. I'm also planning on taking advantage of my slow cooker and making regular hearty dishes on the cheap.
7. Blog more. I totally shit the bed on the last 10 days Vegan MoFo 2010. I tried my best, I really did, but work and school just killed it.
8. Join some classes and meet some new people. Maybe I'll start a meet-up of my own. I went to a Knit n' Sip at a pub in Nanaimo last year that was a lot of fun...

There are a few more things I need to work on, but I'm not ready to put them out into the world yet.

What are your plans for the new year?

Vegan MoFo Day 23: I'm still here!

Please excuse my tardiness in posting. It's been a super busy week, plus my Photoshop is now crashing my computer every time I try to use it *sob*.

On Sunday morning Kirk and I had brunch at Chopper's, a great little diner on Nanaimo near Broadway that our friend Meghan just happens to work at. I love Chopper's brunch because I can have a full meal and leave satisfied and it doesn't include tofu scramble. I have nothing against tofu scramble, mind you, but it's nice to have something else for a change. They don't have a vegan option on the menu, but I order the veggie option with fried tomatoes instead of eggs. Yum!

It comes with bbq baked beans, fried tomatoes, potatoes topped with onions, mushrooms & bell peppers, veggie sausage (or veggie bacon) and toast. It's so good!

Vegan MoFo Day 20: Repost

I have nothing new to write about today - I've been too busy (and have to leave for work in half an hour) and haven't been cooking much. But here's a repost: My first "This Week in My Kitchen" post from nearly a year ago. Enjoy!

This Week in My Kitchen: Barbeque Chipotle Weiners n' Beans, Veggie Pot Pie, Vegan French Onion Soup, Tom Yum Soup Broth

The past ten days have been ridiculously busy with work, socializing ('tis the season), chores, and various other stuff. But I have had time to do some cooking. I'm certainly not the best cook, but I do love to create new dishes in the kitchen. I'm one of those cooks who just can't follow a recipe verbatim - I'm always experimenting, with generally good, but sometimes mixed results! My goals are always to create yummy, healthy vegan food that's going to satisfy me as well as my omni hubby and friends. Here's a selection of the food I've made this past week (Barbeque Chipotle Weiners n' Beans, Veggie Pot Pie, French Onion Soup).


Barbeque Chipotle Weiners n' Beans
One of my favourite things to eat is baked beans, and last week I decided to make a vegan version of weiners n' beans (or beaners n' weins as my mom calls them). I used the sausage recipe from Vegan Brunch to make the weiners, chopped them up, and added them to cooked pinto beans and a sauce made from barbeque sauce, chipotle hot sauce, vegan worcestershire sauce (I use Annie's) and a bit of vegetable stock to thin it out. I baked it, covered, for about 45 minutes. Yum!

sausages steaming

sausages ready for chopping

weiners n' beans fresh from the oven

hearty dinner for a cold night

Veggie Pot Pie

On Tuesday my friend Stephanie came over for dinner. She made salad and I made veggie pot pie. I always use the hot water pie pastry recipe from How it All Vegan. For the filling I just chopped up and par-cooked yams, a russet potato, a parsnip, some carrots, broccoli (florets and stems), mushrooms and finely chopped spinach. With the leftover filling and pastry I made a cute little single-serving galette.

 

pie, made with love

the galette made a good lunch the next day

French Onion Soup

My husband Kirk's birthday was yesterday, and instead of going out for a fancy dinner, he wanted to stay home and have home made french onion soup with me and our friend Hugues. It's one of Kirk's favourite meals, and I used to love it too (before I found out it's made with beef broth). I've never made french onion soup before, so I looked at a bunch of recipes online and watched Alton Brown make it on Good Eats, season 1 episode 9 (I have all the seasons - it's my favourite cooking show). Then I just went for it.

I chopped up three large sweet onions, one medium red onion, and one medium white onion. There were many tears. I melted a couple of tablespoons of margarine in my non-stick high-sided frying pan, added the onions and carmelized them over medium-low heat. I made the broth from organic vegetable broth with a bit of apple cider vinegar, simmered with a bouquet garni of fresh sage, thyme and rosemary and a halved garlic clove and two bay leaves. I added the onions and simmered it for another half hour, then spooned it into two ramekins (for the guys - they had cheese on theirs) and a bowl (for me). I toasted french bread and rubbed a fresh clove of garlic on both sides. Paired with some nice red wine and good company, it was a great dinner.

a lot of sliced onions

carmelized onion smells fantastic

my bowl of soup with garlic toast on the side

Tom Yum Soup Broth

Yum is right! Right now, as I write this, I'm making some lemongrass broth for my favourite soup - tom yum, or Thai hot & sour soup. I eat tom yum soup for lunch three or four times a week, but I've never truly made it from scratch. My methods are by no means traditional, and I'm making it up as I go along. To make the broth I'm boiling three lemongrass stalks, two garlic cloves, an inch of ginger and a dried red chile in a few cups of water. I removed the chile after half an hour so it didn't take over the flavour. The house seriously smells amazing!! I'll make soup in the next couple of days and post the results.

Vegan MoFo Day 19: Loving Hut Lunch

On the work days when I'm too lazy to make lunch in the morning, I go to Loving Hut for lunch. Loving Hut is a completely vegan chain restaurant with locations in nineteen countries, and I love it. It's super casual, inexpensive and fast - perfect for a quick lunch break. And I absolutely adore restaurants where I can order anything on the menu!

Yesterday I had the Golden Rice Bowl, which is brown rice with veggies, tofu, "shrimp", Gardein beef tips and miso gravy. Pretty awesome, and filled me up for the whole afternoon. Yum!

 There were a lot of veggies in it - you just can't see them in this crappy photo...

Vegan MoFo Day 18: Workday Lunch

I try to bring my lunch to work every day, for health and financial reasons. Here's my typical workday lunch:

I always have breakfast on my first coffee break - I have a protein shake made with 1 cup of almond milk, 1 scoop of Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer and 1 cup of water. Sometimes I add a bit of coconut milk for some variety.
At lunch time I have 1 cup each of organic apple sauce, baby carrots and grape tomatoes, and 1.5 cups of home made hummus with whole grain crackers or thin rice cakes. I also keep a package of granola bars in my locker (right now it's Kashi Dark Chocolate Coconut Bars) for days when I just need a bit more to keep me going.
On my afternoon coffee break I'll have an apple or some dried fruit & nuts.
I also drink at least a litre and a half of water during my workday, which helps me stay awake and stay focused, and it forces me to get up and take bathroom breaks!