can food incite feelings of naked-ness?

Or, rather, the lack of food?

OK, what I’m really getting as is that feeling you get when you forgot to wear your watch. You know, that naked/’I forgot something’ feeling? I was thinking about it the other day, and I feel that way about my fridge sometimes. As in, if I’m out of certain things, all is not right with the world. I feel like we have no food. I feel like I cannot cook or clean or anything until I get to the store. Most are probably obvious, but others, not so much. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Spinach – I probably eat this stuff at least once a day, if not more. I’ve started trying to eat my salad FIRST, because I think if I did that, I would eat even smaller portions for dinner. The trouble is, it makes sense to eat the hot food first, as it will eventually cool down, whereas the salad won’t. Dilemmas, dilemmas.

2. Yogurt – I make my own, which means I need some leftover yogurt as well. Andrew is a huge fan of Kefir, so I like having that around for his breakfasts.

3. Bananas – I use half to sweeten my oatmeal and have been known to slather them in peanut butter, too. I used to hate them once they got really ripe, but now I don’t mind so much.

4. Fruit – Right now it’s citrus, as well as these tiny organic Honey Crisp apples I found awhile ago. They are THE BEST. I don’t care that they are $5.99 a bag.

5. Coffee creamer – Duh. Although, I’m seriously entertaining thoughts of switching to one of the Silk or Coconut Milk flavors once I finish this bottle, or even one of the more “natural” ones. Anyone have any thoughts?

6. Eggs – I don’t eat them very often by themselves (although I LOVE a good omelette!), but the lack of them means no baking, which would put me in a tailspin.

7. Cheese – I usually have a block of parm, as well as a container of something else like feta or blue or gorgonzola. They go in eggs, on top of salads or even with fruit. Cheese sticks are an essential item; I pair one with an apple for a snack.

8. Nuts – I have a giant bin I keep in the freezer of just about every nut around (three varieties of almonds, walnuts, pecans, pine, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds…) for baking, making granola or topping salads and oatmeal.

9. Seltzer – I’ve started drinking flavored seltzer sometimes when I just want something other than water. I used to absolutely hate the “flavor” (it’s carbonated water with a tiny hint of flavor, but not sweet), but it’s something I’ve gotten used to. I’m vehemently opposed to drinking my calories (except infrequent sodas and small amount of honey in tea, and, of course, beer and wine), and at 89 cents for a large bottle, I figured I should try to like it.

10. Ice cream – I’m actually on the fence about this one. I am an ice-cream-aholic. I am. Except that I don’t eat it that much; if I did, I’d have more room in my freezer! Seriously, I have like five pints of Jeni’s and Graeter’s ice creams we’ve brought back from Ohio, plus a christmas flavor of Perry’s I bought thinking Andrew would like it. He doesn’t, which means I’m stuck finishing it. What I need to do is learn to have just a small scoop each night–the problem is that even when I use a small bowl, once I start scooping, it’s like I can’t stop. I think I need a 12-step program…

Well, that’s probably about it. I also like having the ingredients to make things like hummus and granola on hand at a moment’s notice, so I guess I could include oats, real maple syrup and honey on that list, too. Oh and dried cranberries (as well as other fruits) and nut butters. I guess I could just keep going…

The good news is that I’m all stocked up right now and feelin’ good!

“homemade” homemade hummus

(This one has been sitting in my “drafts” queue for awhile now; it’s high-time I got it out! I actually still have some of the hummus left in the fridge…not sure how long it lasts, but it seems fine!)

How does ‘homemade’ hummus get even more ‘homemade?’

You start with dry beans, of course!

I did just that, for the first time, and I have to admit–I think I like the canned variety better! Well, I take that back. I think what I didn’t like was the flavor imparted by the vegetable broth and herbs I used to cook the beans; it gave the hummus a subtle ‘herby’ flavor I wasn’t used to. I think next time I’ll start with dry beans and use just water.

The recipe I’ve been using is from Patricia Wells’ Salad as a Meal book. Get the recipe here. I LOVE the recipe–it’s light and bright and fresh–featuring lemon juice, garlic and cilantro.

After soaking and boiling the chickpeas with onion, parsley and bay leaves, I dumped it all into the blender.

Add the olive oil, tahini, lemon juice, garlic and cilantro. You whir it around until it’s smooth and creamy, adding water (or some of the broth, if you saved it) as needed. I think it’s the blender (my food processor is in storage…), but I have to add a lot of water to get it to the consistency it should be.

Half the recipe for the dried beans made double what 1 can typically makes, so I’ll have to keep that in mind for next time. Since Andrew doesn’t eat it, I can’t make too much at once.

After blending, top with paprika and drizzle with olive oil. Enjoy!

who knew veggies could be so filling?

Here’s my light lunch today:

As I said in this morning’s post, I over-did it last night on our date (ahem, the GIANT milkshake), so I wanted to make sure I had lots of fruits and veggies today to counter balance my calorie-laden date.

I had to use the half red pepper sitting in the fridge, as well as a couple celery stalks and the hummus, as they were all getting a bit old. I’m loving Patricia Wells’ hummus from her Salad as a Meal cookbook. I’ve made it twice already. It has more tahini and less olive oil, so it’s lower in calories. It doesn’t have cumin, but instead has more lemon juice and cilantro, so it’s more fresh than smoky tasting.

Here’s the recipe:

Patricia Wells’ Chickpea and Sesame Dip (from Salad as a Meal)

Makes 2 cups; 52 calories for 2 tbsp

1 can chickpeas (she calls for cooking from scratch; her recipe is in the book)

2 garlic cloves

4 tbsp lemon juice

3 tbsp tahini

1 tsp sea salt

2 tbsp sesame oil

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

1/8 tsp paprika

Drain and rinse the beans (since you’re using a can) and throw them, along with the garlic, lemon juice, tahini, salt, 1 tbsp oil and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Add more water as needed to thin it out, up to 1/4 cup. Garnish with the remaining 1 tbsp oil and paprika when serving.

The broccoli was a local find from Wegmans and I couldn’t pass it up yesterday. I find I don’t like hummus on broccoli–I think it’s just too dry or something–so I included a serving (2 tbsp) of my Wegmans Yogurt Ranch Dressing as well.

I added some dried fruit and chocolate to round out the meal.

The photos are pretty horrendous…I was super hungry!

I LOVE Sunsweet’s Cherry Essence Dried Prunes. Prunes get such a bad rap, but they are so good! I also grabbed a couple pieces of Trader Joe’s Dried Mango. WOW. If you have a TJ’s near you, get them! If the prunes are good, these are like dessert. Seriously. They are almost too sweet. The only thing you have to watch out for with dried fruit is the calorie count. It’s easy to snack away and not realize how many you’ve had. A serving size is usually 4-6 pieces (prunes, dates) or less for bigger, sweeter items, like apricots or mango. Just remember that dried fruit is exactly that–smaller, dehydrated WHOLE fruit (usually). You wouldn’t sit and eat 5 or 6 apricots or plums in one sitting, would you?

I also broke up a chocolate bar (on smaller plate) and noted the serving size. I chose half of a serving, or 1/4 of the bar.

However, I didn’t even eat it because I got too full! I guess there was quite a bit on my plate. I’m thinking I’ll have the chocolate this afternoon with a cup of decaf coffee or tea. Or maybe not if I’m still full!