January 28, 2012

It’s Time for…20 Questions!

I’ve seen this survey floating around and thought it looked like fun. Here goes!

1) What is one of your favorite ways to spend a Saturday?

Oh man, I could go on about this.  The perfect Saturday for me means waking up without an alarm, making a delicious bowl of oats, and fooling around on the computer with a mug of tea or coffee in hand. Usually I just browse the Internet, but sometimes I’ll play The Sims 2. Am I the only one who still plays that game?

“Carrot cake” oats with coconut butter

2) List your top three favorite TV shows.

  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer
  • True Blood
  • For a laugh…The Mighty Boosh

3) Would you rather be in pictures or take them?

Take them.  My grandma was the photographer for my family, and we have so many wonderful pictures because of her. She died a few years ago, and I’d like to follow in her footsteps.

4) Why do you blog?

I love connecting with other people who have similar interests in health, nutrition and fitness. Not many people I know in person have those interests, so I’m happy to be a part of this community.

5) Share five websites that you visit regularly…

  • Gmail
  • Google Reader
  • Live Journal (I know, I still have one.)
  • Twitter
  • Yahoo News (AKA celebrity gossip and random Youtube videos)

6) If you could have lunch with one person from your Twitter list who would it be?

Misha Collins. I think I would die.

7) List a few of your favorite snacks.

Yogurt with granola and/or fruit

Peanut Butter Banana Hot Chocolate

Trail Mix

8 ) Do you have a pet? If so, what kind?

Currently petless. I want a kitty.

9) Which three material possessions would you struggle to live without?

LAPTOP.

iPod Touch (for checking Twitter and Google Reader between classes)

My food processor. Love that thing.

10) What’s your favorite drink?

Hot tea! Preferably black tea.

11) Do you enjoy cooking?

Yes! I do have a food blog, after all. ;) I find it relaxing, and it’s a nice to do something else after working/going to classes.

12) Do you have children?

Uh, no. I don’t really want one either.

13) What are your favorite hobbies?

Reading, yoga, writing, cooking

14) Would you consider yourself to be shy or outgoing?

Shy. To be honest, it took a lot of courage just to start this blog. About a year and a half ago,  it would take me 5+ minutes just leave a comment on another blog because I would worry about every little thing. So glad I got over that!

15) If you could change one thing about yourself, what would you change?

Well, related to the previous question, I wish I was more confident.  But as I know from the last few years, it’s a long process, and I’d much rather gain confidence from life experiences than get it instantly. It’s an amazing feeling to be able to look back and see how far you’ve come on your own.

16) Who is your favorite actor/actress?

Hm, tough one. I like Johnny Depp, of course, and Nicole Kidman.

17) What’s the coolest thing you’ve done this week?

I started my second week of classes and went the dentist. Yeah, something fun needs to happen this weekend.

18) Do you live near your family or far from them?

I live WITH my family. :)

19) List three of your talents.

  • Writing. I prefer analytical or research writing over creative writing. I suppose that sounds boring, but I enjoy it. I was really proud that one of the essays I wrote in college got published in a journal.
  • Memory. For some reason, I’ve always been good at memorizing random facts and vocab words. My brain is a sponge.
  • Music. I’ve played the violin since I was eight and started piano in high school. I’m certainly not an amazing violinist, but I did get a chance to play with the band Kansas with my college orchestra.

20) What is your greatest attribute?

Gosh, this survey went from favorite TV shows to this? Okay, I’ll go with my perseverance. When I want something, I just go for it.

Answer one of the questions above. GO!

8 Comments

Filed under Randomness

January 25, 2012

Slow-Roasted Tempeh

Good things come to those who wait.

New Apple products

Source

Roasted vegetables

Harry Potter books

Source

Spring flowers

 Source

And now slow-roasted tempeh.

I love tempeh enough that I often eat it raw out of the package. Yes, I’m gross. But if you’re a tempeh hater or newbie, this is for you.

The tempeh is baked in a marinade for about an hour until it soaks up all the flavor. No bitter tempeh here! I’m sure this recipe would work well with pressed firm tofu too.

Ready for baking

The marinade is loosely based off of Evan’s wonderful maple soy tempeh. Highly recommended if you’re looking for a quick tempeh recipe.

I served mine with the caulipots from Appetite for Reduction and carrots.

Slow-Roasted Tempeh

  • 4 oz tempeh (1/2 package)
  • 2 T apple cider vinegar
  • 2 t olive oil
  • 1 1/2 T soy sauce
  • 1 T maple syrup
  • 1/2 t thyme
  • 1/2 t chili powder

Preheat oven to 350*.

Cut tempeh diagonally so you have two triangles. Cut each triangle in half so you have four thin triangles.

Mix marinade ingredients together and pour  half of it into a small baking dish. Place the tempeh in the dish and pour the rest of the marinade on top.

Cover tightly with foil. Bake for 50 minutes. Take off the foil and bake another 5-10 minutes.

Serves two

Do you like tempeh? What’s your favorite way to prepare it?

3 Comments

Filed under Recipes

Tagged as

January 16, 2012

It’s Spring in January

Happy Monday!  If you have the day off, I hope its been a good one.

Today is my last day of break, so I’ve been making the most of it.  Luckily the weather has been cooperating.  It was 65* degrees today!  And tomorrow it’s back down in the 30s.  Tornado weather? We’ll see.

There was no way I was letting this good weather go to waste.  My mom, sister and I walked up to the YMCA, did some weights and walked back. It was a little under four miles of walking over all.  Just beautiful.  It feels (and smells) like April!

I have a lot of updates, so it’s time for a list.

1.  I went to a basic DSLR photography course recently.  I’m sloooowly getting the hang of it.  This camera is definitely a learning experience for me.  Sometimes I can’t even get it to take a picture.  I’m getting better though.

Here are a few of my favorites I’ve taken recently:

 

Peppercorns!

2.  My new love: this milk frother.

Source

Guaranteed to make any drink taste four dollars more expensive.  Could this be the end of Starbucks drinks for me?  Well, I can hope.

 

3.  I made little individual lasagnas for my family and grandpa based on this butternut squash lasagna with goat cheese sauce recipe.

It didn’t turn out much like lasagna (this was entirely my fault), but man did it taste good!  My family liked it, and thought it tasted like mac and cheese.  Even mom, who doesn’t like squash, enjoyed it.

4. Unusual flavor for Larabar, but I liked it.  Of course, it could be improved with some chocolate chips, but that could be said for just about anything.

5.  My poor old car was viciously attacked by a younger one the other day.  Luckily it didn’t suffer too much damage.

This happened the day after it came home from the car doctor with a new gas door (I accidentally ripped the old one off with my bare hands.  No joke.).  Back to the car doctor!

6.  Anyway else attracted to weird sounding recipes out of curiosity?  This morning I tried out Tina’s oat-less oat bran even though I couldn’t imagine how it would turn out.

WAY better than I expected.  And strangely enough, it really tasted like oat bran.  I think I’ll stick to oats for the most part, but I could see me making this again.

Off to watch Modern Family! I’m behind.

4 Comments

Filed under Fitness, Randomness, Reviews

Tagged as , , , ,