{Veg it Up}

I don't eat meat, and I don't cook every night. So, it's super easy to get lazy with food.

(Cheesy bagels, anyone?) When I do cook, I'm afraid I too often rely on my Mid-Michigan

roots, which are entrenched in the comfort food variety of the one dish casserole. I don't

even really like that kind of food very much, but I know it, it's easy, I don't need a recipe

to make it, etc. Of course, I don't always cook like that, but it happens more than either

David or I would like.

So, I decided to work towards making better habits, using of my goal for June to push me

along. I do alright with the food thing but not consistently enough. I want to do better with

planning meals that actually taste good, giving me a sensual food experience. And put

together meals that give me the nutrients and vitamins I crave, that fuel my body. I guess

they call that taking care of yourself. :) I'm 32 and just figuring this out.

David has been eating a lot less meat, which thrills this vegetarian! He still eats it, but he's

trying to buy better, leaner meats and eat them less often. We were both on the same page

-- wanting to make some healthy dishes with lots of good, fresh, organic produce. He also

doesn't like "meal rotation". Even if I make the same thing a month or two apart he notices.

So, part of this is a challenge to find some new things so I don't hear him say that again. :)

To kick things off, we took a trip to Sprouts (which is a whole three miles from home). The

produce was amazing, and I've been back for more since. When we went together, David got

beans in bulk. We eat a lot of them out of the can, but he grabbed a couple scoops of dried

beans and we soaked them at home. What a difference! I couldn't believe it.

I wanted to share some of the things we've come up with recently in case you're in the

same rut and looking for some healthy food-spiration ...

A new David creation that I loved -- black beans, fresh tomatoes and jalapeños, with feta.


Summer salad -- I discovered it at a Pampered Chef party recently. Greens (I used spinach

and romaine) tossed in fresh lime juice, salt and pepper. Served with slices of fresh mango,

jicama and avocado. No dressing required. I topped mine with a little grated white cheddar

cheese though. Loved it! I learned D doesn't like fruit on his salad, and he won't eat jicama.

He just made a salad with the avocado and some tomato. So, it worked out.

Lentil Loaf -- Recipe here. I love lentils but, until now, I've only ordered them when out.

Now I know, they're so easy to use, cooking up just like rice. The flavor combination of this

dish was awesome; right up my alley. David ... not so much. His loss, I say. More for me! The

recipe said to cook it for 30-45 minutes. I'd cook it less rather than more. I found the recipe

for this on a blog I recently discovered called All Home Cooking, All Year Long. Her photos

are good, the writing is concise, and her recipes look delicious and healthy. Check it!

Vegetarian Stuffed Shells - We loved these. I think stuffed shells are usually too mushy and

lack on flavor. Not these! The reason? Cottage cheese instead of ricotta and beans, which

really added a great texture. Plus, seasoning, spinach, onion, garlic, etc! This recipe is also

from All Home Cooking, All Year Long. I doubled the spinach to add some veg, and as always,

I used a little extra cheese.

Zucchini bread -- this is the first time I've ever made it surprisingly enough. We got a huge,

garden grown zucchini from a friend. David wanted me to make zucchini bread with it. So,

I found this super healthy version of it online from Mayo Clinic. Very good! David discovered

that it's amazingly good when cut up in bite sized pieces and sprinkled over vanilla ice cream.

Watermelon, tomato and cucumber salad -- It rocks. Mary (D's stepmom) learned of it at

a cooking class. This was my first time making it at home. Seedless watermelon, cherry

tomatoes and seeded cucumber. Add chopped, fresh basil with pepper and a bit of olive oil.

All in all, I'm super happy with my efforts so far toward my June goal of making new and

delicious vegetarian dishes with lots of produce. But you don't have to be vegetarian to

like these things. This is just plain good eating. I've cooked as much in the last week and a

half as I usually do in a whole month. (I've made a few other things, but either they weren't

new or they weren't vegetarian. So, I didn't include them here.) I have had so much fun with

it, and the whole process (planning, shopping, experimenting, cooking, eating) has been

totally satisfying. Hopefully I'll have more to come before the month is over.

Is there an ingredient you like but never cook with?

Have you tried some new recipes lately? Where do you look for inspiration?