Comfort Curry

I've been posting a lot of recipes lately, I know!  CRAZY!  It's really just because I've been documenting my meals so well while doing my Total Body Transformation.  

Yesterday I was home sick, so I stopped at Whole Foods to pick up some supplies for some kind of soup.  I can't have a lot of sodium on the TBT, nor sugar - so I had to be careful while picking my ingredients.  Normally when I'm sick I grab a few packs of Ramen, and 10 bottles of Vitamin Water & call it a day, but that just wouldn't cut it this time around!  So I had to get creative and be healthy.  Here's what I came up with!

Comfort Curry
Makes about 4 servings

I got fresh pre-cooked shrimp at the seafood department at Whole Foods, because I just didn't feel like messing with it.  You can use fresh by all means, just add it earlier when cooking!  I also bought pre-made curry simmer sauce (being lazy, again), but making your own sauce is super easy as well.  The other thing I love about this recipe is that you can use any veggies you have in your fridge that are on their way out!  Zucchini, tomatoes, you name it!

Ingredients
- 1/2 lb shrimp
- 3 handfuls of fresh spinach (big handfuls - it will wilt down)
- Baked potato, diced (optional - I just had this leftover)
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 5 or 6 large shitake mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 a pineapple, sliced (you can use canned or frozen if you'd like - no sugar added though!)
- about 1 cup low-sodium veggie broth
- 1 package 100% buckwheat soba noodles OR brown rice
- Thai yellow curry simmer sauce
- Agave nectar (optional)


Directions

Chop all of your veggies, and begin cooking the noodles (or rice) according to package directions.

Meanwhile, heat some oil in a large skillet on medium high heat, and add the onion.  Cook for a few minutes, then add the mushrooms.  When they are slightly browned on all sides, add the potato, spinach, and pineapple - gently fold to combine.

Next, add the curry simmer sauce, and the veggie broth.  Make sure everything is well mixed, then bring to a simmer for about 5 minutes. (In this photo the shrimp has been added, but wait 'till the last minute to add it if it's already cooked - otherwise it will be terribly chewy!) 

After simmering, drop in the shrimp, squirt with some agave nectar (I didn't think the curry was sweet enough, so I added my own sweetness) and cover with a large lid. 

Simmer for about 4 more minutes, then serve over the buckwheat soba noodles or rice. 

I found this REALLY yummy over the soba noodles.  Really hearty, and just what I wanted / needed!  Nom nom nom nom! 

Baked Avocado & Grapefruit

I know - weird combo, right?
One of my friends blogged about trying out this combination (although her avocado was "grilled" - but I don't have a grill!), and although it sounded a little strange, it sounded really yummy too!
And guess what - it WAS!

Baked Avocado & Grapefruit Yumminess

(makes 2 servings)

INGREDIENTS

- 1 avocado (slightly hard) 

- 1 grapefruit

- 1 red or yellow onion (thinly sliced)

- soft goat cheese 

- brown rice (cooked - great use for leftovers)

- balsamic vinegar

- Braggs Liquid Amino Acids (or soy sauce)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Slice the avocado into 8 even strips lengthwise, and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet (I just sprayed mine down with PAM).  Place in the oven and cook for about 5-10 minutes (flipping once). 

Meanwhile, cut the grapefruit into bite-sized pieces, and remove the separations (between the pieces).  If you don't have the patience for this, that's okay! ;)  

Put about 1/2 to 1 cup of brown rice on each plate, then sprinkle with a small amount of Braggs or soy sauce.  Top with the thinly sliced onions, then the grapefruit.  After removing the avocado from the oven (it should be slightly browned on each side), cut them into bite-sized chunks and top over the grapefruit.  Sprinkle everything with the Balsamic vinegar, then top with a small amount of goat cheese. 

The combination of sweet / savory / salty was utterly divine!  I can't believe I just said that, but it really REALLY was!! :)  Yummy + healthy = happy Beth.

The time has come...

...for me to jump-start my life! 

I just started a new blog HERE to track my progress while taking on a Total Body Transformation.  A bunch of the girls that I play derby with have already started the program, and it's about time that I got started as well.  Here are the basics of what I will be taking on in order to change my body (inside & out) and my life! 

Vigorous exercise 5x a week!  This does not just mean derby practice.... this means working out regularly (and vigorously) at least 5x / week.  This will be a heckuva challenge or me, as right now I work out about 3-4x a week tops.  

As far as healthy eating goes....

NO-NO'S
NO SUGARS
NO WHITE BREAD / RICE
NO ALCOHOL
NO CHEESE
NO ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS

YES-YES’S
LOW SODIUM
WHOLE GRAINS (limit breads, pastas, and tortillas)
PROTIENS (egg whites, tofu, beans, natural peanut butter, nuts, lentils, tempeh, seitan, quinoa)
FRUITS & VEGGIES
 
The good part about this is that I will get 1 cheat day a week where I can have some indulgences.  I will probably try not to go TOO overboard on this, because I know what it's like to get over a sugar withdrawal, and boy - it's rough!  

I will be tracking my progress on my new blog (I already posted on there with my goals & such), so feel free to follow me there, and keep me in check!  I will be posting my daily food diary and workouts so that I can be held accountable. 

So wish me luck!!  If anybody wants to join me on my journey, please let me know!  It's always nice to have a buddy. :)

 

Tacos! Tacos! Tacos! Tacos!

If you can't tell by the title of this post, I've been watching a lot of Reno 911 episodes lately.... :)

Anyway, I got me some supplies to make Tacos the other night - and they were WAY yummy! I started with some Chipotle Sausage (vegetarian) by Field Roast that I got at Whole Foods. I think next time I'll just get the actual fake Chorizo, or fake hamburger crumbles with a spicy sauce, as this wasn't my favorite thing. It was much better on top of a Mexican-style salad!

Anyhew, while I was browning that up in a pan, I chopped up some cabbage and an avocado. Yum yum yum!

Whole Foods sells ginormous stacks of corn tortillas (made right there in the store), so I bought 1 package for only $2.50! That's a deal right there, folks. I put some Tofutti cream cheese on each tortilla, then topped with the fake meat, avocado, and cabbage. I dumped some locally made green chili on top, and devoured them.

Deeeelish!

My FIRST real bout at the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver!

This past Saturday was my FIRST ever bout at the Fillmore with the Red Riding Hoods (yep, that means I got drafted to a home team with the Rocky Mountain Rollergirls) - SO RAD!!!

It was an absolute blast, and although I didn't get to skate quite as much as I would have liked to, I felt like I did well when I was out there! Dave Wood, Jay Vollmar, and Wicked Shamrock Photography all captured some amazing shots during the bout, and here are some of my favorites...

This was one of my most solid hits of the night - I'm so glad that Jay caught it! :D

Pre-bout time, my derby wife (Quentin Tarintoya) and I decided to fake some domestic abuse. Love that girl!!

Me and Juno It'll Hurt taking on Frida Beater. We tried to hold her back, but she's a fast one! Probably a big reason why she's on Fight Club...

Me and Shelby Churass during the national anthem. I'm not bored, that's my nervous face!

I'm so glad that Dave Wood captured this photo. That's my daddy wearing the shirt I made for him last Christmas - it says "Papa Sweet Dee". He was right in the line of sight for all of us, and Psycho Babble leaned over at one point and said "I like your dad already". Yeah, me too! :)

We were trying to hold Queen Elizabitch back, but we could not succeed. Again, another Fight Clubber! ;) I just love Maggie Kill n' Maul's face in this one. "OOOOHHH!" LOL!

A big HUGE thank you to everyone who came out that night to cheer for me and my team. It was a truly amazing night that I will never forget!! <3 Derby LOVE!!!

Book Club & Weekend Meals

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ROBYN!

Last weekend we had our book club meeting, which just happened to be on one of our newest member's birthdays (Robyn)! I made vegan peanut butter cups for the occasion, and she blew out the candles. Fun!

The book we read was called "Into Thick Air: Biking into the Bellybutton of 6 Continents" by Jim Malusa. Since I didn't get my book until WAY later than I expected, I didn't get to read very much...only a chapter! I suck!

I'm very excited about the next book we drew from the pot though - our first Sci-Fi! It's called "Grass" by Sheri Tepper. It sounds very interesting, and I wish my silly book would get here in time so that I could start diving in!

The vegan peanut butter cups turned out SO YUMMY, and they were ridiculously easy to make. These were yet another treasure I found in my How it All Vegan cookbook. If I haven't stressed it enough - this cookbook is my absolute favorite!!

Nikki and her ever-growing baby belly! She's the cutest preggers girl ever, I'm tellin' ya. She just told us a couple of weeks ago that it's going to be a boy, and the name that they're going with is "Nico Matteo" which I think is utterly adorable. So Italian!

Just this past weekend, I went to the grocery store with my little sis, and stocked up on healthy supplies for the week. My first attempt was breakfast! I got oats from the bulk section of Whole Foods, because apparently the non-instant version of oatmeal is much better for you than the pre-packaged "Just Add Hot Water" version.

It was a little mushy, and a different texture than the instant stuff, but I think I could get used to it....

.... adding some almond milk, a 1/2 tsp of maple syrup, and a mound of sliced bananas helped too!

To top it off, I made myself some fresh-squeezed OJ/Grapefruit juice. I had both citrus fruits leftover in my fridge, and wasn't sure if I was going to actually eat them anytime soon. So I squished the heck out of them, and made myself a VERY yummy juice. I don't usually like grapefruit juice by itself, but the combination with the orange juice cut back on the tartness significantly.

After the grocery store I made my lunch.... just look at this GORGEOUS purple potato!! I baked it in the morning when I was making breakfast so that it'd be ready to go for me when I got home. It came in my organic produce veggie box I ordered a couple of weeks ago, so it was time I ate it.

I whipped up my quick version of my vegan gravy (I posted about it here) - but I just threw some onions in a small pot, added some nutritional yeast (pictured), some flour, some sage, almond milk, and a couple of squirts of Bragg's. It turned out a little thinner than I would've liked, but my pan was too small to keep adding to! :)

Then I fried up some lovely green asparagus. I know it may sound wrong to FRY up veggies, but I only used the spray oil, so calm down. ;) Also steaming things is just a pain in the butt for me. I've never found a steamer big enough, and it just takes too long if you ask me. Maybe I'm just making excuses because I prefer fried.

While the asparagus was cooking, I peeled up a Tangelo orange. They are SO delicious right now, and I enjoyed the sweet balance to a savory / salty meal!

Next I dumped the gravy over my baked potato. As you can see, it was a bit runny as I mentioned. I didn't really mind it at all though!

Just when the asparagus was almost done cooking I threw in some mushrooms, and added some seasonings. Then I dumped everything on top of the potato!

I haven't had a cup of coffee in a while, so I treated myself to one along with my very colorful meal! It was really yummy, and I ate all of it while watching a couple of episodes of "Reno 911" (yes, I re-rented one of the seasons from the library) - I love that show!

Bridesmaid Dresses - CHECK

Well, we finally got the Bridesmaid's dresses picked out & ordered for Katy's wedding! Woohoo!

Here are some pics of me trying them on. The actual color of the dress is the same as the one pictured on the far left. It's really pretty and shimmery - it's called "Copper", but it's like a pale greenish / gold. Hard to explain, but really lovely!

I liked the style I have on in the middle photo a lot, but it turns out that dress doesn't come in the right color. Oh, well!


Sasha ordered the dress she's in (on the far left), and I really loved Molly in the same dress (far right). The middle pic isn't available in the copper color either, but I think all of us were okay with that. It wasn't one of our favorites!

Sasha's little boy, Cayden, came along for the try-on session. He's the cutest little bugger EVER! He was so happy the whole time - kicking around, making cutesy baby noises, and giggling. Katy couldn't resist taking a video of him too....




After we realized how many dresses we tried on that we could NOT order in the right color (yeah, the salesgirl kind of sucked.... why would you not double check on that first?) we found some options online that we kind of liked even better!

I have learned something new about bridesmaid dresses though.... they purposefully make them so that they do not fit you properly! The bust hung out, leaving a gaping space, they were all ridiculously long - it was as if they sabotaged them on purpose so that you'd have to get it tailored to fit you! BALONEY! And I wear a size 14 in bridesmaid dresses. 14!!! I wear a size 10, tops! I just hate that the second you tack "Bridal" onto anything, the price goes skyrocketing, as does the size.

Whew! Done with that rant. ;)

So here is the one that Geneva, Jess, and Molly ordered. I think it's really lovely, and will look great on all of them.


This is the one that Sasha ordered. She looked great in it, so I would've done the same! :)



And this is the one I ordered. I like the twist in the front, the strapless top, and the sweetheart neckline. I think it'll show off my hourglass shape well.... even though I'll be in a friggin' size 14. ;)


Dress photos from Mori Lee - at this website.

Ohhhh golly gee whiz - I want a scooter so bad!

After I had my first taste of scooter-riding during my New Orleans trip, I have not been able to get the thought of owning my very own scooter out of my head.

I thought I'd be able to get one with my tax return money, but after a LOT of frivolous spending during the holidays & on my vacation, I had to be responsible and use it toward paying off my debt....

But ohhhhh good heavens! I want one so bad!! In the words of Wayne (from Wayne's World) - "It WILL be mine! Oh yes, it WILL be mine!"

Sigh! SOMEDAY!! ;)

Messenger Bag & Salsa

You guys must be thinking "Gosh, Beth has gone bonkers! What's with these posts lately?" - but that's okay. I'm all about the random posts the last few days, and here's yet another! :)

The other day I was on the Clymb website (kind of a deal-of-the-day site for people who like to bike, rock climb, camp, snowboard/ski, etc), because I saw that they had messenger bags up there. My current bag is on it's last leg, but I guess that's what you get when you buy a bag made out of old billboards. Sure, its green - but not built to last! Then I came across this beauty of a bag! This isn't the color that I got (I couldn't find mine on their site), but this is the style. The TimBuk2 Classic Messenger Bag (in size large). It's so magical, and I LOVE it! I rode my bike into work today for the first time since last fall, and it hugged my back just the way a bag should. Mine is silver grey and turquoise, and it holds all of my belongings perfectly, is waterproof, and very heavy-duty. They normally go for around $120-ish, but I got this puppy for $45 off the Clymb site! AWESOME!


Then last night after tap class, my derby buddy Cat A Combs and I went to the grocery store to pick up some grub. I was looking for some good salsa, and came across this gem. Raspberry Chipotle Salsa.....whaaaa??? I quickly plopped it in my cart so that I couldn't change my mind. It sweet and smoky and OH so good!! You can check out more of Mrs. Renfero's awesome salsas here!

Body Combat, Boy Dinner, Trivia

Weird title, huh? ;)
Well, that's pretty much what my Tuesday night was all about!

First I went to Balanced Life Systems, where trainer Josh Franks kicked my ass!! OK, not literally, but with an awesome workout. It was their Body Combat class - kinda like kickboxing. Lots of kicking, lots of punching, lunges, bouncing on the balls of your feet.... holy workout batman! I worked up one hell of a sweat - it was AWESOME!

Apparently I have a lot of aggression to get out too. Gosh, I thought derby did that for me already! I was wailing on my imaginary partner - I think I would've beat the shit outta somebody if they had actually been real. What made me feel really good about myself was that the girl next to me (who was much thinner than me, that looked like she had more muscle than me too) had to stop near the end and take a break! I just kept on pushing through - it felt soooo good!

After that I headed to my fella's place where he cooked up a ridiculously yummy (VEGAN) dinner! He totally made it up too, which is even more awesome. This dude is a keeper, I'm tellin' ya.

First he fried up some "sausage" meatballs...

... then he simmered them in Madras sauce with veggies & lentils and served everything up over some brown rice. It was really delicious, and a wonderful post-workout meal! Filled me right up.

But the night was not over yet!
We then headed to Freshcraft for Geeks Who Drink Trivia night. Our team name was "Hey! There are SKITTLES in there!" - of my suggestion. It's from The Hangover, and that line cracks me up every time. The night was ridiculously fun, and we got 2nd place!! Well, we had to fight for it....

....OK, I did! They had a dance-off for the 2 teams that were in 2nd place. And I went nuts. This picture doesn't do it justice (why do I look like I'm demonstrating a very suggestive act?) - but there are videos that were taken. Those may be posted soon, as I have no shame.

And I managed to accomplish all of that with only drinking 1 glass of red wine. I was pretty darn proud of myself!

Hope you all had a great Tuesday night too! See, you don't need to wait for the weekend to have fun. :)