I haven't been cooking a lot lately — or maybe I should say I haven't been cooking carefully followed recipes or composed dishes. It's been more "get-'er done" cooking, which isn't to say it hasn't been relatively healthy or tasty — just fast, and without much pre-planning. Someone once told me I should post these dinners, so here are images from the last two nights. Above is one of my favorite fast meals. It basically consists of Asian rice noodles, which I love for their taste, texture and speed of cooking, tofu, and whatever veggies I have on hand — in this case, broccoli, bok choy and mushrooms. The topping is black sesame seeds and shriacha. (I used Shark brand sriracha, which I've heard is most like the traditional sriracha used in Thailand, and unlike Rooster brand, it contains no preservatives. It's a little sweet for my taste but I use it anyway.) This meal in a bowl made me very full and happy.
Last night's dinner was a soft corn tortilla warmed in the wok, and filled with kidney beans and lightly sautéed cabbage. The beans were from a can, and chipotle in adobo and frozen corn were added to the pot as they heated. Also added were oregano and chili powder. And jarred Food for Lovers vegan queso. This turned out to be really good, and I overate. Tsk.
I have a cat friend. She (I assume she's a she) comes to visit occasionally, and if I happen to be home and see her sitting outside the glass door from the deck to the kitchen, I invite her in for a snack and a cuddle. I have no idea who she is or where she lives, but she seems healthy, well-fed and in good condition. She doesn't have a collar with ID. Personally, for many reasons I won't go into here, I believe that city cats should be house cats. I don't buy into the "cats should be free to roam" theory. All of my cats, even the one I rescued, covered in ice on a winter day, became contented house cats. I've known too many cats, both city and country cats, who died under the wheels of a car, disappeared, or became ill while they were "free." And there are birds to consider.
I'm a sucker for tender portrayals of people and animals — especially kids and loving, devoted dogs. Can you watch this and not shed a tear?
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You may have noticed the Rabbit Food Cookbook blog tour happening this week on a blog near you. The "tour" officially started Monday, and will hit this blog on Oct. 30, with a review of The Rabbit Food Cookbook, and a giveaway. Here is a schedule so you can follow along during the week—hopefully discovering some great new blogs, and entering giveaways to win a copy of the book!
October 24—Cake Maker to the Stars
October 25—Cook Vegan Lover
October 26—Bake and Destroy
October 27—Carrie on Vegan
October 28—Vegancraftastic
October 29—Manifest Vegan
October 30—Andrea's Easy Vegan Cooking
October 31—Vegansaurus
Awwww. I know what you mean about fast, easy, effective dinners! Since I cook all day, it's been a little difficult doing anything huge for dinner. Can't go wrong with your wonderful choices. Tacos and cabbage, rice noodles. Delish!
ReplyDeleteI think that some of our best meals have been the ones that we just throw together without a recipe. Both of yours look great!
ReplyDeleteThat kitty is beautiful, and I agree that she's a she. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that all torties & calicos are female. Love the shot of her, too. That tongue! <3 I'm with you on the cats staying indoors thing, too. I've been told that keeping Sophie & Crystal inside is mean, but strongly disagree with that.
Adorable video. :)
GiGi,
ReplyDeleteFast and effective — I may end up rice noodling it again tonight, maybe with tempeh and cauliflower. Either that or lentils, another fast food.
Molly,
I think it's almost all torties are female; it's rare but possible one could be male, so I feel pretty safe in assuming she's a girl. I'm really happy you keep your kitties safe inside, where they belong. I know this discussion can bring out very passionate feelings on the part of cat owners.
Glad you liked the video. The dog is so devoted to the little boy, and so patient!
I'm with you on the rice noodles! I love em! Good to know about the Sharks brand sriracha. I haven't seen it but will keep an eye out, thanks.
ReplyDeleteAlso, super cute cat! I'm with you on keeping city cats indoors too. My mom couldn't bear to keep our cats inside when they cried at the door, and we ended up losing two because of that :(
OMG, that's my cat!!!
ReplyDeleteI love the look of your quick meals. I'm going to have to try some of those rice noodles, I haven't had the really thin ones like that. They look so perfect together with the veggies and tofu.
(Just kidding about the kitty; looks sort of like her though.)
foodfeud,
ReplyDeleteI just noticed that Annie Chun makes brown rice noodles, and I'm going to look into getting those. I can't imagine that the rice noodles I eat have a very high nutritional profile. But they are so good and easy to make.
I'm sorry you lost your cats to an outdoor life. I think keeping them inside is the kinder choice.
Rose,
I wish it were your cat so I could return her. Is she an outdoor cat? About the noodles, see what I wrote to Maud. Do you think the noodles have much food value?
Nice get-er-done meal! We have been having those lately. Easy but what we like after a long day.
ReplyDeleteWow, the meals you "throw together" are things that would take me hours to conceive of and prepare; I am very impressed & need to get into the habit of these healthful, "easy" meals.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for the tip on the sriracha; I'll been on the lookout for Shark once my giant Rooster is finished.
Claire,
ReplyDeleteEasy is what I like even after a short day, unless someone else is doing the cooking. :D
Abby,
No they wouldn't. It's kind of like making a salad, only it's cooked.
You might not like the Shark sriracha since your cleanse — too sweet. (haha) The Aadvark is good, though, isn't it?
What a cutie! Labs are such great choices for a family. That's a special video from daddy to son. By the way, I'm jealous of what you eat when you have nothing to eat. I'm usually staring at a bottle of mustard and a container of miso.
ReplyDeleteblessedmama,
ReplyDeleteNow that you mention it, mustard and miso will play prominently in today's post — if I get it written.
Your fast and easy meals look and sound delicious! My fast and easy meals really lack in the healthy for you department! I've been doing a lot of them lately too.
ReplyDeleteThat's so neat that the cat comes inside to visit and cuddle. She's so pretty. I'd be wanting to keep her. :o) Loved the video...I'm a sucker for kids and animals too.
That's good to know about Shark's brand. I've never seen that one, but I'll keep an eye out. I like the taste of rooster sriracha, but I am wary of the preservatives.
ReplyDeleteThose are some very tasty looking easy weeknight dinners! To me rice noodles make a stir-fry so much more exciting than the standard brown rice I generally use.
I agree with you about the indoor/outdoor cat issue. I've heard people who have cats who feel guilty that their cats don't get to roam free outside, but to me the life expectancy of indoor cats to outdoor cats outweighs that issue by far. (I pass so many deer and raccoons who've been killed by cars, and they grew up navigating a world with cars.) I figure there are lots of things I don't do because it's just too dangerous. I make sure my cats have lots of things indoors to give them happy fulfilling lives.
I love quick and easy but tasty and satisfying meals like the ones you shared here, though you are using ingredients and combos I've never thought of! They sure look and sound very tasty, and I especially need to start playing with Asian rice noodles. They just never occur to me.
ReplyDeleteYour cat friend is very pretty! She knows a good thing when she sees it, your house would be a fun one to hang out at. :-) I'm not a cat guardian, but if I were I'd be the guardian of indoor cats for sure, for their own safety and that of the birds, mice and other critters. I've known lots of very happy, contented indoor cats. (Heck, one need look no further than Molly's blog to see two of them! :-))
I loved the video - Toby has the patience of Job! Maybe they should have named him Joby. :-) I must say though, for a two year old, little Joshua seemed very gentle. The scenes of them cuddling and of Toby following his little friend around were heartwarming, and when I saw the caption at the end it definitely made me misty-eyed. You can tell that Toby felt a real sense of responsibility along with love for Joshua.
I didn't know anything about the Rabbit Food Cookbook tour (or the cookbook itself, for that matter!) I feel so behind on everything, I'm scrambling to make up for lost time! I'm looking forward to your cookbook review when it's your turn tomorrow!
Michelle,
ReplyDeleteI don't know Michelle, your dinners look pretty healthy.
I am getting pretty attached to the cat — and I'd keep her safe inside. I wish I knew where she lives.
Cadry,
I find the sriracha at a large Asian grocery, but I think Rooster has a pretty tight corner on the market, and tends to be the only brand available in most places.
I'm with you on the cat issue.
Laloofa,
I like the rice noodles because I don't have to cook them in a separate pot, in addition to the taste and texture, but see today's post. The cat walks right in like she owns the place. Sometimes when it's warm, we leave the back door open, and I've found her roaming around in the house!
That video gets me every time I see it, but I have one for Monday that really starts the faucets.
Wait. My Rabbit Food day is Sunday. I haven't written anything yet!
If I was going to have a cat, I wouldn't want it to roam, either. For safety first of all, and second, I had a dog once who "preyed upon" a small animal in our yard, and I had a hard time feeling the same way about her again. I couldn't handle the cat bringing things around thing.
ReplyDeleteYour Asian meals have been looking really great.
Jenny,
ReplyDeleteExactly.