Dad's Birthday

Last night, we celebrated by dad’s (twenty)third birthday with a small dinner party. Can you believe he had me when he was only three?

I spent the entire day cooking, cleaning and preparing for the party. I love playing hostess, so I always make sure everything is just right! Breakfast and lunch were eaten in a hurry:

Nature’s Path SmartBran, Nature’s Path Millet Puffs, blackberries and almond milk

The last of my TJ’s habanero lime tortillas with PB&Co.’s The Heat is On peanut butter

Stawbs + bloobs

Millet puffs in almond milk

While I prepared the food, my brother helped clean the yard of branches and other debris that fell during the big storm. He found this big guy in our pool, and brought him back down to our pond so he wouldn’t die!

We started off with plenty of appetizers: sun-dried tomato and olive hummus from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan with crudités and whole-wheat pita, salsa with Garden of Eatin’ multigrain chips, softly spiced nuts from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan, and bleu cheese stuffed olives.

Sun-dried tomato and olive hummus- this was an absolute hit, I’d absolutely recommend making it for your next gathering!

Whole-wheat pita for hummus dipping

Salsa (Costco brand is the best!) with Garden of Eatin chips

Softly spiced nuts- these were delicious, but the humidity made the topping kind of sticky

Bleu cheese stuffed olives

While everyone enjoyed the apps, I put the finishing touches on the meal. The menu included wheat and baguette bread, a Greek salad, vegan broccoli slaw, Moroccan tempeh, cold quinoa with cashews and basil, and wild Alaskan salmon on the grill.

The whole spread

Wheat loaf and baguette

Greek salad with spring mix, tomatoes, cucumbers, red peppers, onions, Kalamata olives, organic feta cheese and homemade oil & vinegar dressing

Vegan broccoli slaw, a recipe I got from Mike’s mom’s Food for Life class

Moroccan tempeh, which Mike’s mom also shared with me awhile ago. Everyone raved about this- if you’re trying to get someone to try vegan foods, this is a great recipe to try! I’ve included it at the bottom of this post.

Cold quinoa with basil and cashews, from The Kind Diet

Wild Alaskan salmon, which my brother cooked on the grill. Look how pink it is, with no artificial coloring!

My first plate (I went back for seconds on the broccoli slaw and quinoa salad):

After yesterday’s crazy storm, we were lucky to have beautiful weather and POWER! Some people in our area are still without it. We took advantage of the slightly cooler temperatures and sat at our picnic table in the backyard.

The whole group:

My grandparents, my Uncle Pete and Aunt Bonnie, me, my brother Luke and his fiancée Cammy, my Uncle Jack and Aunt Jan, my dad’s good friends Bill and Judy, and my mom. Check out the huge branch in the background that fell during the storm!

For dessert, there were three options: Super Charge Me Cookies from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan, fruit salad, and of course, birthday cake!

Cranberry almond Super Charge Me cookies

Fruit salad with strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, mango, peaches and apple

The piece de resistance: chocolate peanut butter cup cake, adapted from Bakerella (recipe at end of post)

We all sang happy birthday to my dad before digging in!

I filled my plate with a slice of cake and tons of fruit salad, then went back for seconds of both. It’s rare that I help myself to two full slices, but this was just too delicious to resist. I was proud of myself for enjoying the second slice just as much as the first!

Before the night was over, I made sure to get a picture with the birthday boy.

After saying goodbye to everyone, I cleaned the kitchen and headed to bed. All in all, the evening was a huge success! My dad had a lot of fun, and while I was worried that the healthier meal might not go over well, everyone seemed to enjoy it. It’s been years since we had a party to celebrate my dad’s birthday, but he definitely deserved it. I’m glad it went well!

Today’s agenda includes lots of relaxing and feasting on leftovers J Hope your weekend is off to a fantastic start!

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Moroccan Tempeh

• 2 8oz tempeh cakes
• ½ c olive oil
• ½ c water
• ¼ c lemon juice
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• 2 tsp cumin
• ½ tsp chile powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 crushed garlic cloves
• ¼ c to ½ c chopped cilantro

Chop the tempeh into small squares. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and marinate for 1-2 hours. Pour into baking pan, cover with foil. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 minutes.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cake (adapted from Bakerella)

For the cake (adapted from Too Much Chocolate cake at allrecipes.com)

·      1 package devil’s food cake mix

·      1 6oz package of instant chocolate pudding mix

·      1 c sour cream

·      1 c vegetable oil

·      4 eggs

·      ½ c warm water

·      2 c chopped mini Reese’s peanut butter cups

For the frosting

·      1.5 c heavy cream

·      8oz good-quality dark chocolate

·      ¾ c creamy peanut butter

·      more chopped mini Reese’s for garnish

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, vegetable oil, eggs and warm water. Fold in chopped peanut butter cups and pour into two well-greased 9” cake pans. Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before using a serrated knife to even the tops of the cake.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring heavy cream to a soft boil before pouring over chocolate in a mixing bowl. Whisk until the chocolate is melted, then whisk in peanut butter.

To assemble cake, sprinkle top of bottom layer with chopped peanut butter cups and then pour a generous cover of frosting between the two cake layers. Add the top layer and pour frosting over entire cake, allowing it to drip down the sides rather than spreading it (the icing is fairly liquidy before it is cooled). Press remaining peanut butter cups into cake, and allow to set in refrigerator for about an hour.

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What’s your favorite dish to make for a party? I think the hummus and tempeh will become new staples in our house!

When is your birthday? Any other January babies out there?   

Date with the devil

This morning, I hate a date with the devil in the form of a certain sports bra and spandex wearing brunette.

I’ll be honest: I actually can’t stand Jillian Michaels. Any trainer that advocates the use of diet pills clearly does not have their clients’ best interest in mind. However, I was looking for an exercise video that was cheap, tough and easy on the knees, and after reading Caitlin’s review of No More Trouble Zones, I decided to buy into the Jillian franchise and give it a shot.

My review? It was difficult! I mentioned before that my brother and I ordered the Insanity DVDs, and while they’re an awesome workout, some of the circuits just put too much strain on my old knee injury. There was only one move in NMTZ that I had trouble with, which was great! Of course, it’s not an extensive strength training plan in the way that Insanity is, but for a great full-body strength workout in 45 minutes, it’s the best I’ve heard of. I might not like some of Jillian’s endorsements, but she definitely kicked my butt!

Rewinding to this morning, I had a bowl of Fiber One, fresh raspberries and almond milk when I woke up.

After my tough workout, I was in the mood for cold, sweet carbs. First, I had some Archer Farms vanilla cranberry peanut butter on frozen millet bread. I usually thaw the bread, but with the hot weather, the coolness was perfect!

The second part of lunch was a SIAB containing almond milk, blueberries, a scoop of Sun Warrior and a peach. Winning combo:

I spent the afternoon getting things ready for my dad’s party tomorrow. First, I hit up the grocery store for all the necessary ingredients, and when I got home I made spiced nuts and a batch of Super Charge Me cookies with cranberries and almonds. I’ll post pictures and recipes tomorrow when it all comes together!

I snacked on a cranberry Heart Thrive with cherries to keep me satiated and away from licking the mixing spoons:

Next up, I got to work on the piece de resistance: a dark chocolate peanut butter cup birthday cake. I’d just gotten it in the oven when the weather started to go nuts- pouring rain, incredible gusts of wind and huge booms of thunder. By some miracle though, the power didn’t go out, and the cake finished baking perfectly. I ate a TON of chopped Reese’s cups while I was baking the cake. Bite-sized chunks are impossible to resist J

For dinner a bit later, I made a big pasta bowl with a package of tofu shiritaki noodles, a tomato, chopped carrots, marinara, humnut sauce and Veggie Patch falafel balls. This combination was surprisingly delicious- marinara and humnut are a great combination.

Afterwards, I had the usual big bowl of strawberries and a package of milk chocolate Qbels I received from Ashlei awhile ago- thanks girl!

Gotta run- I need to get cracking on the hummus, artichoke dip and several other things for tomorrow! Happy almost Friday!

Do you use workout DVDs? Why or why not? If so, which are your favorites? I’m just starting to get into DVDs, so I’m open to suggestions.

What’s your favorite candy? I’m not talking dark chocolate here- I’m talking the saccharine, saturated-fat loaded stuff like Snickers and Skittles. I’ve always been a Reese’s and M&M’s girl J

Lentil Walnut Loaf

Once again, I’m floored. I know I shouldn’t be surprised by now, but the support this community offers is incredible. Thank you all so much for your kind words on my last post! Today I politely but firmly explained to the family I babysit for that two days a week is all I can do, and they understood, just as I knew they would. All your encouragement really helped me bite the bullet!

I woke up at 4 this morning and couldn’t fall back asleep, so instead of tossing and turning, I got up at five. I grabbed a banana for fuel and did an easy 45 minutes on the elliptical while watching The Hills and The City. I ended with 20 minutes of stretching before making a real breakfast:

Fiber One, fresh raspberries and almond milk

I spent the morning babysitting and snacked on a chocolate brownie Z-Bar at some point before coming home just in time for lunch.

I made my mom and I a sandwich with Archer Farms vanilla cranberry peanut butter and a quesedilla with PB&Co.’s The Heat is On. I added some baby carrots and huge bowl of strawberries for some fruit and veg action.

 

For an afternoon snack, I made myself a protein smoothie with 1 c almond milk, 1 c blueberries, 1 large peach, 1 scoop Sun Warrior vanilla protein powder and a spoonful of Maranatha almond butter. This combination made a ton- nearly three cups worth!

After seeing Jenna’s Lentil Walnut Loaf all over the blogosphere these past few days, I knew I had to make it. I consider myself a decent cook, but I’m definitely not a speedy one. This recipe took me awhile, but the result was absolutely worth it.

Holy deliciousness this was amazing. Jess gave it rave reviews, and she couldn’t have been more right! The best parts were the walnut chunks and tomato balsamic topping- both gave the dish a ton of flavor. Make this now, I promise you won’t be disappointed!

I’d initially intended to wait for my parents to eat dinner, but after smelling this fresh from the oven, I had to dig right in J I ate outside, so at least my cats kept me company!

 

Plus a green salad topped with ketchup. Yes, I’m weird.

I’ll bet you can venture a guess at what I had for dessert…

Gala apple and the last two squares of Lindt black currant chocolate

I’m looking forward to sleeping in a bit tomorrow- it’s been awhile since I’ve had a morning to myself! Hope you all have a great night!

Do you enjoy cooking full meals, or do you prefer simpler dishes? Do you take your time, or hurry to get the prep work done so you can eat? What’s one recipe you’ve discovered lately that you’re itching to try?

In the summer months, do you like eating outside in the warm weather, or inside in the comfort of air conditioning?