Chinese "Fake Out"

Firm tofu coked with 1/2 cup of long grain brown rice and sautéed veggies.

I rarely eat at Chinese restaurants. Why? Because as a vegetarian, there are only 2 things I will eat: steamed veggie dumplings and steamed veggies (I gave up on broccoli in garlic sauce because its SO bad for you...like seriously. 1 serving of Broccoli is around 2 large florets, equal to around 30 calories. So how is it that broccoli in garlic sauce is up to 650-700 calories??!?!?!)

So my best bet to anyone trying to splurge on flavor, not on calories-make your favorite Chinese food dinners at home! The great thing about doing this is:

1. You know exactly how much you're putting in of everything
2. You have the flexibility to make your dish in a variety of ways
3. It takes less than 30 minutes to prepare a filling dish
4. You'll save tons of money!

Above, I made a tofu dish in brown rice and vegetables. 

To make it easy, buy bags of fresh frozen vegetables. I got America's Choice Oriental Blend.

The sauce I used was Annie Chun's Chinese Stir Fry.

Ingredients:

• Any sauce of your choice (I recommend Annie Chun's)
• 1 serving of frozen or fresh mix of vegetables
• 1/2 cup of brown rice
• a pinch of salt
• 1/2 a block of firm tofu

Preparation:

1. Cook the brown rice first as it takes the longest. Follow instructions on the rice packaging.
2. Drop a little spray oil or olive oil onto a saute pan and heat pan at medium.
3. When rice is 5 minutes until ready, drop the mixed vegetables into the pan and let them cook for a few minutes while moving them around with a utensil. Add a pinch of salt for extra flavor.
4. Drop in the tofu after a couple minutes along with the sauce of your choice.
5. After 5 minutes, add in the ready brown rice and mix all together. 
6. Serve hot in a nice bowl. 

Foods for Summer: Grilled Bell Peppers

So easy, so colorful, so flavorful and SO SUMMER!

I recommend getting all the colors because while they're the same fruit, they all have a unique taste and sweetness!

Ingredients:

• Bell peppers (the amount above was serving 4 people, so make you're own judgement on how many you'll need)
• Olive oil
• Salt and Pepper (ground up)

That's it. So simple!

Preparation:

1. Heat up the grill!
2. In the sink, rinse off your peppers to clean off any pesticides. (Safe fruit is great fruit...Lil Wayne?)
3. Cut up your peppers in half and remove the stems and seeds. Then cut them into thick slices lengthwise and lay them out on a serving tray.
4. Bush a light coating of olive oil onto the strips. 
5. Lightly season the strips with salt and pepper. 
6. Take the strips to the grill. Place them skin down onto the grill so that you'll get the blistery effect. Depending on your grill you'll let them sit for 3-8 minutes depending on your liking.
7. Flip over the peppers and for 2-4 minutes let them sit. You'll only need half the time for this side of the pepper.
8. Put them back onto the serving plate and eat! So nom.

Grilling veggies is such a summer thing, so try it out before it's too late.

Calling all South Park Fans...

So when I met my boyfriend, (not that you care) I knew we were going to mesh well because of our love for South Park. Especially Randy, Staaaaan's dad. Staaan.

When I came across this little blurb in one of the Newsweek, Time, One-Of-Those magazines, I was pretty friggin excited.

YAAAAAAAAY!

I probably will buy them just for the reason they are the infamous Cheesy Poofs and so I can say "No! These are MY Cheesy Poofs, bad kittay!"

But I'll probably wont eat them...a lot..

Play with your Food.

During the summer, you don't really need a reason to eat fruit. It's delicious, nutritious, juicy, and easily cools you down and quenches your thirst on a hot July day. My personal summer favorite is watermelon. Nothing is more refreshing than a large wedge of the red stuff.

Watermelon is great for before workouts because they fuel your body with quick energy while digesting quickly enough to not bother your stomach during your fitness routine. It's also a wonderful afternoon snack to have by the pool or a satisfying dessert to finish off your day.

Yet what is really fun about watermelon is that it is easy to play around with...

See what I mean?

It's large circumference allows it to be cut out into fun shapes! I also like to slather a little Chobani nonfat plain yogurt on to add a little protein. 

Hey, who said you can't play with your food?

Wonderful healthy snack idea found here! Props to Taralynn!

F-Factor

It's pretty well advertised that most Americans don't get enough of the fiber they need. Actually, many people living in developed nations have this problem. Personally, being a vegetarian, I'm spending so much time making sure I'm getting enough protein and iron in my diet, that I'll often forget about fiber.

Now it's well known that fruits and vegetables provide great amounts of fiber. Apples have something called pectin which is a soluble fiber that keeps you feeling full and digests slowly. Broccoli and carrots are great daily snacks that you can eat with ranch dressing or hummus, but they also provide around 5 grams of fiber. You can also start your mornings with a healthy cereal (no, Cookie Crisp doesn't count, guys).

But still, regardless of your efforts, it's hard to keep up with a proper eating routine and some days you wont reach your necessary intake. So I'm here to introduce you to something that has helped me out A LOT.

Need I say more? 72% of your DAILY FIBER INTAKE!!

(oh...and only 70 calories per serving.)

So I'm not here to lie to you and say, "oh it tastes just like Kashi!" because it doesn't. While Kashi cereals are wonderful ways to start your day, this is much more healthy tasting, but I actually really enjoy that. I like the way my body feels when I take each bite. Plus, you can add some fruit or some Splenda to it to kick it up a notch. 

Adding this great item a couple times a week to your nutrition plan can assist your quest to fulfilling fiber needs. Try it!!

Healthy snackies:

Instead of reaching for the ice cream or the sweets, I decided to freeze a serving of seedless red grapes for a cold and refreshing afternoon snack. Try it!

Chocolate Lave Cake

Warning for the weight obsessed: This is the recipe of death. While consumed, you'll be transported to a divine, higher place where a warming sensation will overcome your earthly body. Once completely devoured, you will kick your legs around like a whiny little 6-year-old and wonder how you just ruined your diet.

For those not on a diet, carry on.

Ingredients:

• ramekins
• 1 stick of butter, plus a pad for greasing
• 4 oz. dark chocolate
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks (so yes, you're using 4 eggs, but not 2 egg whites)
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 tbsp. sifted flour
• cocoa powder

Preparation:

1. Grease the ramekins with a little pad of butter

2. With cocoa powder, line the ramekin. This will allow the complete ramekin to not be lined by white flour and will also give more chocolate flavor.

3. Once complete, place the ramekins on a cookie sheet. 

4. Now it's time to melt the dark chocolate and butter. Use a double broiler. If you're like me and don't own a double broiler, google how to substitute a double broiler.

5. While that's melting, mix together the eggs, yolks, and sugar.

6. Gradually drizzle in the melted butter and chocolate with the eggs and sugar mixture.

7. Gradually add 2 tablespoons of sifted flour. 

8. Now that the ingredients are all together, place even amounts into the ramekin.

9. Bake for EXACTLY 7 minutes at 450 degrees. You're going to look at the cake in the oven and say, "hmm, it looks like it needs another minute." NO! Any more, the center will not be molten! It will taste like a chocolate cooked through cake...good...but not lava cake!

10. Let cool for a minute and then take a knife to go around the ramekin. This will help the cake come out easily. 

11. Decorate and serve!

Guys love these recipes, so make it for a loved one!