For the love of Squash Casserole

I had some squash I needed to cook so I looked on vegweb for a Squash Casserole. This recipe sounded simple so I decided to give it a shot. It was very good and I will make it again soon!! The picture doesn't look all that great but it was!

Here's the recipe:

1 Lg. Vidalia onion, chopped (I used less about 1/2 of a onion)

4 Lg. (or 6 sm.) squash, sliced in thin rounds

1 c. Shredded cheese (I used the 2 % cheddar)

20-30 ritz crackers (I used whole wheat ritz)(1 sleeve)(Crushed)

1/2 c. margarine (I used less)(Just seemed like alot of margarine to me)

Put a pot of water large enough for your sliced squash on to boil.

While waiting for the water to boil, you can melt the margarine in a sm. skillet over med heat & saute onions til translucent.

Boil the sliced squash for about 2 min. to soften & then drain well.

Add the softened squash to skillet & then add the crushed crackers, and cheese. Mix well to coat all the squash w/ the onions, crackers, and cheese.

Put mixture in casserole dish that seems appropriate, and top w/ some more cheese.

Bake at 375 for 30 min. (Mine took less so check it )

This week pretty much disasters :(

I'm kinda of disappinted with this week. Most of the stuff I made were disasters. The only thing I know I will make again is Chana Masala.

I've tried a few recipes with tofu and everyone of them bombed. I don't think I'll try anymore recipes with the stuff. People say the tofu will taste like whatever you cook it in.WRONG! It still tastes bland. So no more tofu!!
Well here's to next week....I hope they will be better!!

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In other news: I was watching the news yesterday and they were talking about this website: http://www.freerice.com I checked it out and it is pretty fun. When you get a word right it gives rice to hungry people around the world. So it's a learning game and you help out the world. I think that is so cool!! Please check it out!

Chana Masala

I give you Chana Masala!! I found this recipe on vegweb.com. All the reviews said it was delicious so I decided to make it. At the first bite I was like I don't know about this but the second bite was hey this is pretty good! It was just a alot of flavors I had never had before. Here's the recipe.

2 tbsp. veg oil

I used half a onion, chop.

(Garlic in a jar) -1/2 tsp equals 1 clove of garlic just what you need

1 tbsp. curry

can use 2-3 tbsp. tomato paste I used about 3

can of chickpeas, drained, reserving 3 tbsp. liquid

pepper

crushed red pepper, opt.

1 tbsp. margarine

3/4 c. coconut milk

Heat oil on med-high heat. fry onions til slightly browned. Reduce heat to med. Add garlic, curry, and paste. Stir and simmer about 2 min. Add chickpeas, liquid, coconut milk, & pepper. Simmer 5-6 min., stirring occasionally. Add red pepper to taste. Add margarine, stirring throughly to melt it. Stir and simmer for 5 min more or til peas are softened and dish is hot.

I served it over jasmine rice.

Today I made pineapple enchilades. They were good but I think I'll use a sharper cheese to make them even better! I think also I'll put it in for less time because this was 5 minutes before the time I was supposed to take them out. If you want the recipe go to the link heidi'srecipes.


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I wanted to tell people about 2 products I found. When I went to the health store the other day my son asked for a soyjoy. I figured it was healthy so why not. He liked it & he asked for more. I got the strawberry flavor at wal-greens. They are a little pricy I guess but I'm trying to find something healthier for my son to eat.

Flaxseed cookies? Yep my hubbie found these at wal-mart.(He thinks I'm on a health kick) I tried them and they are pretty good. They taste like oatmeal cookies. Another reason why you should try them they are good for you!! This is what I found out about Flaxseed and why it's good for you.

Eating flaxseed reduces cholesterol, It's good for diabetics(lowers sugar), Helps fight cancer, helps menopausal symptoms, fights heart disease, helps your immunity towards colds & viruses. Eating flaxseed even helps depression.
Here a some websites I found this information at: http://www.flaxhealth.com/,
http://neutral-izer.blogspot.com/ (It's at the March the 18th post) , and http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/whattoeat/a/flaxinfo.htm .

A Day of Firsts

Yesterday My family and I went out to eat. We went to a little mexican place I had been wanting to check out called Salsaritas.

I got something vegetarian for the first time! Veggie tacos and black beans and rice. It did have cheese and sour cream on it cause I'm mostly a Lacto- Ovo Vegetarian. Well I hate to say it but the tacos were pretty bland and by the time I ate it the tacos were falling apart.(We stopped by wal-greens to pick up some soyjoy bars for my son) The black beans and rice were very good so now if I want some blk. beans and rice I know where to go. Well at least I tried!! Sorry about quality of pic.'s but I was starving and just took a few quick ones.

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In Other News:

My son tried a fake chicken sandwich the other day. He saw me eating one the other day and said I want a chicken sandwich like you ate. I said o.k. but It's a fake chicken sandwich and showed him the box. He tells me it looks like a chicken sandwich so it's not fake. Well I thought the best thing to do is just say o.k. it is real. My son is very picky and I'm happy if he eats anything at this point. Usually for the past few weeks it's been pb& J sandwiches. He ate it all w/ ketchup(his choice) and cheese. I'm so proud!!

Tomorrow I'm doing a review on 2 new products I bought this weekend plus a new recipe I'm trying :)

Sorry I didn't post the other day. This week I've been pretty busy but next week I should have some new recipes to try on here. The other night I tried these as a little snack. They were pretty good. They are Ginger Teriyaki veggie cakes from Morningstar farms. They were pretty dang good. I will get these again for sure!

This week I've been pretty much getting recipes to try from lots of places and I can't wait to try them!! I also went to the MillHouse Natural Foods health store today looking for Quinoa. They didn't have it and they didn't have that much of a selection of foods in the first place. I did get some veganaise and some Organic Blue Agave sweetener. Thought I would give it a try.

(Agave is a sweet syrup, like honey, but a little thinner in consistency. Because it has a low glycemic index and will not elevate blood sugar. It is a great honey replacement for diabetics and low-glycemic dieters. I found this explanation on the computer about it)

Here is my menu of all the recipes I'm going to try next week.

Pineapple rice salad

Chana masala over jasmine rice

Orange glazed tofu over wild/brown rice salad

Lazy falafel

Baked eggplant over wheat pasta

Garbanzo tacos (Sooo Good)

Pineapple enchilades by Heidi's recipes

Lemon Garlic pasta

Quick and easy

So today was all about simple & easy.

I had a faux chicken sandwich which was a Morningstar farm chik pattie on a hamburger bun w/ some mayo(I didn't have any veganaise) and some dill pickles. Some Lays baked potato chips were on the side.

I will most certainly eat this again!

Well I tried a new recipe today even though I was kinda of busy. So I am proud of myself because usually in this situation I would get some fast food to go.

I went to my local library to pick up veganomicon which I have seen on some people's blogs they rave about. To me though it is not really geared for a beginner like me nor someone who doesn't have alot of time (or doesn't want to spend alot of time cooking) I want something fast, and healthy. Thank god for vegweb. Anyways I also went to walmart and picked up a few things. Then right as I was cooking Tofu Fried rice my son's school called saying they think he has the pink eye. Well I had to go pick him up and then I finally got to eat it.

This recipe was called Tofu Fried rice and it was in the The Starving Students Vegetarian book by Dede Hall.

Update: This recipe wasn't all that great. It was pretty bland and I had to do alot of doctoring to it. Don't recommend!!!

My 1st recipe to show!

I'm pretty excited!! I have my 1st recipe to show. This is a recipe I have been wanting to try for the longest. I found it in The Teen's vegetarian cookbook by Judy Krizmanic. It is called Peanut Pasta.

UPDATE:I decided that this recipe is not a keeper because I found something I liked better and it was much simpler. How simple you ask much simpler I had some stir-fry noodles left in fridge(by the tofu in my wal-mart), decided to mix it with some peanut sauce, sliced grn. onions, and a shake of red pepper flakes. I liked this much better and the taste was spicy enough without adding anything else. Yummmy! I will be making this again absolutely!!!!!

Newbie

I haven't really had to get used to the adjustment too much. Alot of meats I just didn't care for in the first place but I ate them anyways. The Main problem I have encountered is in some of the recipes I've wanted to try I can't find the ingredients they ask for. The grocery stores only carry a limited amount of veggie food and Alabama doesn't have a health food store like Trader Joes which sucks. I have tried going into little bittie health food stores and they carry mostly supplements. I have found some meat substitutes at our local wal-mart though. I got some Morningstar farms items such as chik'n patties, veggie burgers(which are ok but don't really like red pepper and I can taste it), veggie cakes, and Boco Savory mushroom burgers. When I get to trying these items I will tell you how they taste. Here's the website to Morningstar farms to help you on your quest to eating meatless http://seeveggiesdifferently.com .

My ramblings

I decided to make a journal about all the stuff I'm trying to do right now like giving up smoking and trying to eat vegetarian. I think it keeps me on the right track and maybe someone else will get some inspiration from my posts. Well anyways here is what I've been going through.
It's been a week since I've smoked. I had to give it up cause it was making it hard for me to breathe. But geez I haven't been having alot of patience here lately even less than I used to have. Usually if I got stressed I would smoke a cig now I'm trying to keep myself calm. Let me tell you hasn't been easy. Another thing I'm working on eating more healthy. Trying to eat vegetarian as much as I can so I'll post the recipes I try. I really like the website http://vegweb.com/ alot so if you are a vegetarian or a newbie like me check it out. Will post in a couple of days.