vegetarian | Sherry's A Labour of Love

Well, we are still hanging in there with the Eat Right 4 Your Type meal plan and thus far have continued to notice less bloating, weight loss, more energy (with the exception of the Lyme symptoms that plague my body with the changing weather) and a new outlook on our future and foods. We have all noticed that certain foods can still make our mouths water and yet, we are not craving much more than the fresh veggies and fruits that our body needs. We had a few weeks that we struggled with brilliant meal ideas, yet we made it through and this week has been a little better with the planning and food prep.

I would say that one of our all time favorites has been the meal on Monday night when my husband and I had the opportunity to prepare dinner together like we used to, pre-children. It was a delightful evening filled with ideas, conversation and sharing of responsibility to prepare a meal that the kids didn’t critique and devoured leaving no leftovers. (You could say boo hoo…it was that good!)

The recipe was taken from fellow blogger minimalist baker.com. Vietnamese Spring Rolls with Crispy Tofu. She did an amazing job coming up with the recipe. I only made two changes to it, I used Brown Rice Spring Roll Papers and I used Bean Threads as the noodles. I have avoided tofu for so long it is difficult to convince myself to use it in my recipes, however, this one was well worth it. Especially when I found organic, fermented Tofu. I encourage you to take a look and give them a try.

Tonights dinner was another hit, making Buckwheat Tabouli served up in romaine leaves or in avocado halves. The original recipe came from the back of the Eden Organic Buckwheat package, however, I changed some of the ingredient choices… not sure it’s still considered tabouli.

2 C. cooked Eden Organic Buckwheat, cooled and fluffed

1 English cucumber, cut in half longwise, seeds scooped out and diced

3 medium green onions, chopped

5 artichoke hearts, chopped

1/8 C. chopped raisins, (I would have used currants, however I was out of them so I chopped up raisins)

1/8 C. pine nuts

1/2 C. fresh, chopped mint

1 C. fresh, chopped parsley

1 TBS. fresh minced garlic

1/8 C. pumpkin seeds, chopped

3/4 C. Olive Oil

Juice from 2 fresh lemons, plus another 1/2 to drizzle over before serving

2 tsp. sea salt

1 diced up ripe avocado, unless you serve it in avocado halves

Mix all ingredients together and chill for at least an hour. Fill Romain lettuce boats or Avocado halves and drizzle the juice of 1/2 a lemon on top prior to serving.

Okay, so if you are following this fun journey with me (us…) then you already know that we are two weeks into eating according to our blood type. It’s been quite a journey. We have noticed that weight loss, although slow, is going to be accomplished. We learned that we are sleeping better, have more energy during the day, are thinking clearly, and are noticing that the water weight that “weighed us down” (ha ha) is actually minimized. And on a more personal note, “gut” reactions are improving. If you know what I mean. 🙂

The winner of this past week was the wild caught Walleye.

Arugula greens on the bottom…

Baked Walleye with approved seasoning…

Topped with: sauteed pinenuts, fresh garlic, 1 cup of parsley, pea shoots (chopped) and chopped green onion. Then baked again for another 5 minutes.

Served with: Sauteed purple, yellow and orange carrots, celery, pineapple, and garlic, in grape seed oil and a dash of a sweet red wine and a pinch of sea salt.

I topped it with some bean sprouts and served it up with a smile. 🙂

The peppery bitterness of the arugula was a nice addition to the fish since we cannot use any pepper for seasoning.

Some of our other favorites this week were:

The buckwheat pancakes with freshly ground buckwheat, ricotta, 2 eggs, sea salt, 1/4 C. honey, 1/8 C. olive oil and baking powder.

1 egg Omelette with black beans, green onion, kale and goats cheese.

Salads topped with a variety of the following: black beans, goats cheese, feta, cucumber, carrots, artichokes, pecans, almonds, avacados, and seeds. For dressing we bought and have enjoyed some various flavored olive oils with some fresh herbs.

I also made some greek muffins out of almond flour. They had feta, precooked turkey bacon and spinach. These are a favorite in our home. They actually look like and taste like muffins. 🙂

And second place went to the lettuce wraps that I made.

Diced Chicken breasts (I used only two breasts in the whole meal for a family of 4), chopped Kale, diced into cubes butternut squash, onions and pineapple. Placed in a leaf of Boston lettuce and topped with just a dollop of sour cream. These were also very yummy. I did season the mixture with fresh garlic, herbs, and a touch of coconut aminos.

So far so good. We shopped yesterday according to our weekly meal plan and I look forward to sharing with you next weeks favorites. (I already have to say that today’s homemade tortillas were a hit…until next week….)