My Soba Noodle Dinner - DELICIOUS!!!

Julienne some organic carrots

chop fresh celery

steam in microwave 3 minutes and set aside

chop some fresh mushrooms

chop a bunch of green onions

have a handful or two of bean sprouts

Peanut oil - I used just one Tablespoon

Oyster sauce - a couple of good dollops

soy sauce - a couple teaspoons

a good spoonful of hoisin

about a cup of veggie broth

Soba noodles cooked in boiling water 5 minutes, then drained

2 cups of this delicious chicken broth

A nice big squirt or two of Siracha. Depends on how hot you want.

The finished product

Unfortunately you just can't capture FLAVOR in a photo. And you may look at this and think "ick, doesn't look appetizing" but believe me -- it was so delicious!!!

So here are the directions:

Assemble all your ingredients first:
You really choose how much of each thing you want but I will put how much I used.

Two large carrots, peeled and julienned (or sliced into matchsticks)
3 stalks of celery, chopped
one whole bunch of scallions, chopped up.
about 8 mushrooms, sliced
a couple handfuls of fresh bean sprouts
1 bag of broccoli that you can steam in the bag. Poke holes in bag, steam in microwave 3 minutes on high. Set aside.

In a large fry pan over high heat, put a tablespoon of  peanut oil. Let it get hot and throw in the chopped carrots, celery, mushroom, onions and beansprouts. Stir fry for a couple of minutes. Lower heat to med-hi and continue to stir fry for about two minutes or until the veggies are "crisp-tender". Add about a tablespoon of oyster sauce, a spoonful of hoisin, and a couple teaspoons of soy sauce. Cook one more minute. Add a cup of vegetable broth. Remove from heat. Throw in the cooked brocolli and cover the pan. Set aside.

In another pot, bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Cook the Soba noodles for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water. Set aside in the strainer.

Put the veggies in the empty pot that had the soba noodles. Add the chicken broth and put back on heat for a few minutes to get hot. Then add the soba noodles. Squirt a nice bunch of Siracha sauce on top. Put into a bowl to eat. Taste it and if you want to add any additional oyster, hoisin, siracha, or soy sauce, do so according to taste.

I also put a little bit of Asian seasoning and granulated garlic on the veggies when they were stir frying.
I did not add any additional salt as the broth, and the sauces contain enough.

I was amazed at how delicious this was and I ate two huge bowls. I had enough to bring to lunch today. Can't wait to eat it.

Second week of Green smoothies....

I haven't got sick of them yet. It's an excellent way to get a TON of veggies in me. Salads take forever to chew, but I can blend a smoothie and get a whole head of lettuce in me in very little time.

Today's smoothie has a whole banana,  a whole apple with skins, 3 oranges,  2 cups of spinach, 2 cups kale, a whole head of green lettuce (not iceberg, the good green kind), about 4 small dates, a teaspoon of manna, almond milk, chia seed,  2 sticks of celery, and 2 carrots.  (this makes enough for breakfast AND lunch)

Just a little tiny spoonful of manna gives your smoothie a tropical taste. Manna is pure coconut. Nothing added. It's good.

I just ordered some Maca root powder, Goji berries, and cacao to start experimenting with different flavors.

I have noticed that my cravings for anything junky are rapidly disappearing. If I am hungry, I really WANT to eat vegetables. That is so weird. Somebody brought donuts to work.... I was not even tempted. I usually get the munchies about 2pm and now I have raw broc and cauliflower with some ranch dressing and maybe a handful of nuts.

I've lost 5 pounds so far.

So, so far, so good.

Quinoa stuffed acorn squash

half acorn squash roasted 40 min at 400 degrees

sauteed goodness

So I started trying to eat more whole foods and less processed stuff. I got a recipe for some wild rice stuffed acorn squash and wanted to try it but I didn't have the wild rice. So I substituted quinoa.

It was very easy and pretty tasty.

Split the acorn squash in half  and scoop out seeds. Put cut side down on baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes at 400 degrees.

If you haven't already cooked some quinoa, do so. You will need a cup of cooked grain.

In a fry pan, sautee 2 TB minced red onion, 1 apple, chopped, (I left the skins on), some dried cranberries (I think I used 1/4 cup), some pecans (I used 1/4 cup of pecan bits), and a few teaspoons of coconut oil.

Sautee until the onions are soft.  Then add 1 cup of cooked quinoa (or wild or brown rice). And a dash of nutmeg and cinnamon. Last, a sprinkle of sea salt.

Scoop into the acorn squashes and eat.

Serves 2.

If it is not "sweet" enough for you, drizzle with a little honey. Or maple syrup.