I can cook! Vietnamese Curry 04/05/2011
Sorry it's been so long, gals and guys! But I have a special cooking post for you guys. It's special because I suck at cooking. Things that come in a box and can be microwaved are my specialty. My brother gives me crap about my food being poison. It wasn't for lack of trying. I just wasn't very good at it. But one day, I found something I was alright at. Back when I was in college, I tried to make my mom's Vietnamese curry. She doesn't measure anything because she's an amazing cook, but I had to start from something, so I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, and started testing it out. I've made some revisions, asked my mom for a little advice, and have pieced together a decent meal. My roommate at the time loved it, and now my boyfriend even requests it! I guess I can cook something after all... So here it is, "my" recipe for Vietnamese curry: Marilyn's Fool-Proof Vietnamese Curry (if I can make something that people can eat, so can you!)
Saute onion until soft and translucent. Stir in garlic, ginger, lemon grass and curry powder. Cook for about 2 minutes, to release the flavors of the curry. Add potato, sweet potato, carrots, tofu and bay leaf. Pour in chicken stock. Stir. Bring to a boil, then stir in bell pepper. Add sugar. Add Sriracha and salt to taste. When soup returns to a boil, reduce heat (about level 4) and simmer for 40 to 60 minutes, or until potatoes and carrots are tender. Serve with rice, or French bread, or rice noodles. Anyone else struggle with cooking? 1 Comment Day 11, the end of the No Cheat Challenge! 03/26/2010
So the No Cheat Challenge was originally supposed to be two weeks long, but after my friend called in a a second "food emergency" to our nutritionist, our nutritionist had us come in early, weight in, and then decide if we'd earned a cheat day. Well, I'm down 1.2 lbs this week, and 4.2 since we started, although my body fat is about the same. (My nutritionist blames that on the inaccuracy of the body fat calculating instrument). So I decided I've earned it! I've been craving pizza like crazy so I had pizza. I ate half of a large pizza. I didn't know I could eat that much pizza. I will definitely have to go on a nice long run tomorrow. What I've learned:
Day 10 of this No Cheating nonsense. 03/25/2010
Today was a crazy day. Very very crazy. But fortunately, I have some good gals that I work with and with whom I am friends, and we were there for each other when we needed it today. And... I stuck to my plan! Kind of. I ate the right breakfast, snack, lunch, and second snack. I had planned on working out in the afternoon, but there had been a crisis and one of my friends really needed some support, so we were going to go get some drinks (for her) and then go to a Scentsy party another friend was having. But I didn't have any dinner food and couldn't make it that long. So I called my nutritionist, saying, "I have a food emergency!" I was at On the Border and wanted to get the okay to eat a tortilla, grilled fish and grilled veggies instead of a tortilla, tofu, and veggies. He laughed and said it was fine, as long as I stayed away from cookies (which, by the way, have been EVERYWHERE lately!) Today was Day 9 of the No Cheat Challenge. It was fine for the most part. I'm getting anxious for this to be OVER. My last day, after I weigh in, I'm definitely going to treat myself to some of the things I've been craving the past two weeks. Items include: Peanut Butter Oreos (omg, I love Oreos, and I love PB, so I am flipping out about these), Oreo Cakesters, Pizza with alfredo base, cajun tots with ranch, fresh baked chocolate chip cookies, and some MARGARITAS! (I'm a little obsessive about making sure I get to have some of EVERYTHING... but I'll try and pare down the list eventually so I don't go overboard). The most exciting meal of the day was dinner. I had some fresh cooked carrots, and an AMAZINGLY YUMMY wrap. The Don Poncho high fiber tortilla is a little bland and... well, fiber-y, but edible. But the Morningstar Farms Grillers Turk'y Burger and the 100 calorie packet of Wholly Guacamole made it heavenly. The burger was nice and moist and tasted delicious. The guac was fabulous. And together, it was magical. I'm definitely going to be eating this again.  Went for a 7 mile interval training session again today, since the weather was gorgeous. My running crew and I were still tired from our long workouts this weekend, so we ended up taking it easy. I'm allowed to have as much fuel while running as needed, and since I love eating Shot Bloks like they're candy, I had four bloks (I shared two with my friends, who had forgotten to bring fuel). Day 7 and Day 8 of the No Cheat Challenge 03/23/2010
Oops, forgot to post yesterday! Things have been a little crazy :P Day 7: Stuck to the plan! My body was a little sore from Sunday's 18 miler, so I took it easy at the gym and did a light workout, and then took The Stick to my legs. Day 8: Still stuck to the plan. I was really tempted to snag one of my brother's Jolly Rancher's as I walked out the door this morning. I thought, "Eh, it's just a few calories!" But I knew I'd end up confessing it to my nutritionist and would be mad at myself for not strictly sticking to it (I hate losing. haha). Did some cardio and weights. Planning on doing 7-10 miles of running/walking tomorrow outside, if the weather continues to be nice!  What foods tempt you? Day 5 of the No Cheat Challenge 03/20/2010
Today was Day 5 of the no cheat challenge. I managed to stick with it, even though weekends tend to be some of the hardest days for me in terms of eating clean.  Banana and almond butter for breakfast!  Also for breakfast, I tried out a new coffee flavored protein drink called 'Click.'  Yummm...review to come!  Morningstar Farms meatless crumbles, broccoli slaw with onions, taco seasoning, and a whole wheat tortilla Yay for being more than 1/3 of the way finished with this challenge. I can't wait til it's over.
Tomorrow, I have an 18 mile run planned. The good news is that my nutritionist said I can add 2 cups of pasta + 1/2 cup tomato sauce to my plan any time I run farther than 12 miles! :) Do you eat well on the weekends? Or do you struggle like I do? :P |  Hi, I'm Marilyn! I'm a twenty-something living in the Pacific Northwest. I have an obsession with makeup, and sometimes I actually go to the gym, run, lift, or do yoga. I also write over at WeHeartThis.
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